Junjou Flame
by Sun'sMoon
Summary: Takahashi Misaki lived what he called a "normal life style". Unlike some of the other important people in his life, he could definitely say he is-no doubt- NOT a homosexual. A determined Takatsuki Shinobu plans to change all that. MisakixShinobu, AU. 8D
1. Act 1:1

**(Please Read)**** A/N: ****So I decided I needed to make revisions to this not only because of the obvious grammar errors I should have found after x amount of times of re-reading (that I probably still didn't fix), but I really want this to sound like a possible Junjou arc in its format, which means actually using chapter titles (Also known as Acts) and writing in first person based on different characters' perspectives. I should have thought of this earlier, but my apologies! The content will not be changed but the point of view will be. Thank you for reading!**

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own Junjou Romantica and all that stuff nobody cares about!**

**Summary:**** Misaki had a normal upbringing. He went to college, lived with his brother and unlike some of the other important people in his life; he could definitely say he is-no doubt- NOT a homosexual. A determined Takatsuki Shinobu plans to change all that about him, who insists that "You never know until you try". And so began Takahashi Misaki's nineteenth year!**

Junjou Flame

"I'm in love with you."

So, I lived what I called a "normal life style"-at least that's what I thought.

Currently, I, Takahashi Misaki, was a nineteen year old enrolled in Mitsuhashi University (although that was thanks to that flamboyant pervert Usami "Usagi-san" Akihiko, my tutor).

Home was only minutes away from the University, so I decided to stay with my older brother and walked to school (or at least he tried to, since that idiot Akihiko always forces me into his sports car because nii-san tells him to)

Like every average teenager my age, I hadlooks (although he I never had a lady of my own), I had talent (which was really only cooking) and at the very least, I was totally and undeniably straight!

So… why the hell should I be blushing when this stranger I barely know out of** nowhere** confesses to me this way? Who does that? It's so awkward!

"It's destiny. Take responsibility."

Most importantly, why was that man being so forward…and blunt?

_**Act 1**_

_**Part 1**_

**Opportunity Is Not the Gentlest Creature**

It all started with my typical morning. I shut off my alarm at precisely 7 AM, showered and then got dressed in something casual that I washed the night before (since I'm the one that does the laundry). After that, I left my room and then headed down the stairs where my brother already dressed for work would be downstairs waiting for me.

With a bright smile glued to my face, I cut into the hallway chipper as ever despite the early hours of sunrise and-

"Ah! Nii-chan!"

There my beloved brother Takahiro was, pinned against the wall by a beastly, taller man towering over him. Their bodies were pressed together in such a disgusting manner that could immediately be judged as "way too much for my virgin eyes to look at" and the man glared daggers at me, obviously annoyed that I found him about devour his prey.

"M-Misaki! I'm s-so sorry, I wasn't expecting you to be up so early!" Takahiro apologized quickly. The monster didn't even bother to move away! He just kept his hands at my brother's hips as if they were suddenly going to fall off and run away from him or something.

"Nii-chan, I have school! More importantly," I pointed at the man, "What is **he** doing here? It's not even 7:30 yet!"

"This is _my_ home, insolent brat," the man grunted. Takahiro laughed nervously.

"I think he means that you're usually not awake at this time, Usagi-san, since you don't even take him to school until around 9," he calmly assured him.

"Nor am I as he calls it 'sexually harassing' you at this time."

"Why are you getting angry at me? You're the one that starts it all the time!" I yelled, "You should at least get him in a private room or something-not do all that weird stuff in front of me! I don't need to see that!"

"Not this argument again," Takahiro groaned, gently cupping his own face with his hands.

"If all you're going to do is yell at me, I'm going to bed. You can walk yourself to school."

"Usagi-san, don't say that! Tokyo is not the safest place," he reminded him.

"And your point? Honestly, I think the boy needs a kidnapping to shape up his manners a little bit."

"If he gets kidnapped then I'm leaving you!"

"…Then I retract my last statement."

After that we ate breakfast together (that I cooked as both nii-chan and Usami are prone to setting the house on fire) and we went our separate ways as I had silently hoped for due to the earlier awkward conversation.

Well, okay my days didn't usually start like **this**-at least that wasn't until the day Takahiro and Akihiko announced that they were "going out" a couple of years ago. They ended up moving in together and I ended up being dragged along as well to his new "nuclear family" and then recently, Akihiko proposed engagement and Takahiro had agreed right away.

Even through the experience of living with Akihiko, the man usually pulled late nights as he was busy writing his manuscripts so that his editor Aikawa wouldn't have to murder him (and boy could such a pretty face make ugly expressions that would put every legendary monster to shame! ..At least she is kind enough to bring my brother and I sweets). Other times, it was because of his fame since he was a well known novelist and often he went to meetings for his new works for publication of any kind ranging from book to a drama series.

However, no matter how busy he was, that wouldn't make him keeps his hands off his precious Takahiro. Now, I am happy my brother found someone to settle with, but I really would have liked to not have heard when as early as 4 AM, the obnoxious creaking and rocking of the double bed next door loud enough to wake me! Actually, I hate in general hearing them as it was possible they would "make love" randomly if they were found in the same room together-like what I had to see just now!

It so happened that thanks to bad luck, I had caught them together before he was about to prepare breakfast (or good luck, since it stopped them). I could already feel that today was going to be a less than pleasant day.

School then began with Kamijou (A.K.A "The Demon") – Sensei, my Literature professor, and his class.

Kamijou-sensei would remind everyone of the assignment due at the end of the week and then begin his seminar.

First, he would catch a student chewing gum and chuck a book directly at his or her face.

Another student would be caught day dreaming somewhere in the back and Kamijou will throws something else, but it hits a student closer to the day dreamer. At the same time, the thrown is proven effective since it terrifies the dreamer enough to not fall back into that realm.

Sometime towards the middle of the class and the end, Kamijou would run up one of the class isles just to grab an electronic device out of a student's hands, smack the student with it, and keep it in his desk drawer until further notice.

Class would be dismissed and those who were fortunate enough not to feel the wrath of Kamijou's temper were grateful.

As for me, I didn't receive the opportunity for such warm feelings that day. I had been a victim a few times already in the past, but only as the student that has gotten certain objects such as a book and a plastic coffee mug that only hit me because I sat too close to the day dreamer-and today it happened to be a spiral notebook that made me unsure at first whether it left a mark on the left side of my cheek or not. Surely Usami-san if not my brother would talk care to notice this and have a talk with me despite the fact that it wasn't my fault for this unfair occurrence. Then Takahiro would begin some kind of ridiculously long lecture, worrying over nothing and then I'd feel guilty from then on for causing trouble.

With my mind on that as I gathered my books together, I was preparing to start a conversation with Sumi Keiichi, who I usually sat next to during class.

"You know, I've always wondered what would happen if you caught one of his books like a baseball. Do you think he'd get mad?"

"Well, I don't think it would make things better if you shouted 'Home Run!' either," Sumi laughed.

Suddenly a slightly familiar person came down the aisle and stared at the two of us momentarily, sucking in his breath as if he had something to say.

Of course I was the first to notice him staring at us, unless possibly Sumi did. Then again, I never could see what the guy was thinking, but I don't think he knew who the kid was personally while we knew that he was in our class. It's not like I wanted to talk to that kid either.

_'What a weirdo.'_

Then again, maybe I was being judged as a weirdo.

I held my hand a few centimeters from my mouth and checked for signs of bad breath. Nope, it was fine. Did I have something stuck in my teeth then?

Still, that was no reason for him to be staring like that… I thought maybe he was staring at Sumi. Perhaps he wanted to speak with him.

"Uh, Sumi-san," I said, "How about I meet up with you later?"

"Yeah, sure-if Usami-san lets you out of the house for once."

"I know, right? It's so disturbing! Sometimes he's almost as bad as nii-chan!"

That guy still standing at the aisle didn't leave when Sumi walked away. No doubt about it, I was his target and I was less than thrilled.

It was making me very… uncomfortable.

Should I have approached him?

It wasn't like I had anything to lose except maybe a couple limbs if he was part of something crazy like the yakuza. And an organ…Damn.

Should I have ran for it?

"Takahashi Misaki."

I nearly jumped at the mention of my name.

_'…Wait, how did he know my name? That's so freaking creepy!'_

"Can we talk?"

_'About his yakuza business-oh, stop that! He's probably not part of that. Just man up and talk back to him.'_

"U-uh… sure... Where at?"

"The nearest coffee shop would be fine." It wasn't like Akihiko was going to pick me up soon anyways, so it would be a good idea to kill some time.

We left the university and walked over there in silence. I somehow was able to keep my composure and next to me he seemed to feel that way too on a first glance.

In reality, I really should have backed out of this.

It wasn't like I could have said no either. An offer from a friend wasn't something I was likely to turn down.

'_**But we're not even friends! We barely know each other!'**_And if we did, it was probably because of something paranormal like a connection in a past lifetime like in that manga I've read thousands of times before!

…Or, at least in my imagination it could happen, but that wasn't the point!

"Do you like coffee?"

"Not in particular, no." His face showed immediate disappointment that made my heart somehow twinge slightly with guilt.

'_Oh crap! Gotta act fast!'_ "Ah, but I love the little coffee shop bakeries! They make good cake!" Slightly more relaxed, he folded his hands together.

"Is that so?" His expression changed to a calmer one. "I feel the same way."

At least the boy was being considerate. Maybe this wouldn't go so badly after all.

We stepped inside the coffee shop and I went on line.

"I'll go get the cake. Is there anything you want?"

The boy glanced at the display.

"Strawberry short cake would be nice." He slapped about a thousand yen onto the palm of my hand. "That's for you, too." I immediately protested.

"Oh, no! No! That's fine! You don't have to"-

"Next." The cashier boredly waited for one of them to approach the counter. I would have to worry about repaying the money later.

"Can I get a strawberry short cake and uh… pound cake?"

The cashier got a couple of paper plates, put the slices of cake onto them and placed the plates on a tray that he handed to me.

"That will be 500 yen."

"And how much was the pound cake?"

"250 yen," he answered dryly.

That wasn't so bad. I would show him who was boss! I could pay for my own meal!

Proudly, I searched one pocket and then the next. It wasn't empty, but the only money inside was the...

"1,000 yen," I mumbled. Shit. And I left my wallet at home this morning too because I was in such a rush to leave!

Then I looked back. Apparently he was watching me while I struggled to figure out a method for paying. He nodded to me once in a snarky way that said he understood _exactly _the situation and there was no choice but to give up. There the 1,000 yen went as I took the tray and slapped the change down onto the table that was already picked out.

"I owe you 250 yen, by the way."

He broke off a piece of his cake with a plastic fork.

"It's not that big of a deal. I don't care."

I slowly sat down and began to eat the cake.

"So… why did you need to speak to me for again?"

"I wanted to apologize for today." At first I didn't understand until he pointed to the side of my face. "It looks a little red."

"Oh! The notebook?" I laughed. "So you were the one dozing off? That's okay. It's not the first time it's happened to me. You didn't have to do all this!"

"I know, but just"-

"It's fine, really!" I took a large bite of cake. "What's your name, anyways?"

"Takatsuki Shinobu. You really don't remember me after all," said Shinobu. I raised an eyebrow.

Now that I began to think about it, that name was familiar… Even his looks were familiar! Huge gray eyes, dirty blond hair…

"Oh yeah! I remember you now! I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner. Didn't I see you at a wedding party or something?"

"Yes, my older sister's, in fact."

"That's right! My brother dragged me there because he knew the groom in some way," I recalled, careful to not reveal my brother's orientation and his famous boyfriend.

"Yo Miyagi."

"Yeah, that really tall guy! I think I've even seen him around the university." I put a hand behind my head. "Man, I feel like such an ass now for not noticing that all this time! Must be fate, eh?"

Shinobu shifted his shoulders and lowered his head.

"You say fate?" He lifted his head. "There's another reason why I asked you to come here." I took another fork full of cake.

"Spill it out, then! What is it?" I stuffed the large piece of cake in my mouth.

"I'm in love with you."

Right then I coughed loudly, ignoring a few bits of cake that went flying out of my mouth and wheezed every time I tried to breathe in and chew. My hand covered my mouth as I attempted to swallow the cake and took in deep breaths that were cut off by obnoxious noisy coughing and I could feel my face turning a bright red.

"U-Um… what?" I paused to wheeze. "Come again?"

"It's destiny. Take responsibility."

The look on Shinobu's face looked more serious than ever. It was really starting to scare me.

"… Uh… Shinobu…"

"Hm?"

"You do realize what you're saying, right?"

"I do."

The tension started to build up in a more awkward way than any conversation I had ever had with Usami- and that was saying something.

"Well, I appreciate you taking me out here and stuff, but there's nothing I can do! You're a guy and I'm a guy-a **straight **guy as a matter of fact!"

Shinobu's eyes narrowed and he drew a little closer towards me.

"Are you sure about that? Your face is pretty red. Obviously you're flustered."

I glared at him irritably and turned my exposed, burning face away.

"Are you trying to say something?"

Shinobu crossed his arms.

"I'm trying to say that you claim to be straight, yet you've probably never done anything with a guy in the first place."

"Because I'm straight!"

"Have you ever even done anything with a girl?"

And so the tension thickened. It was obvious who had the upper hand to say the least.

"Uh… well… there was this one time"-

"I win."

'_**So is that all? Some kind of game? **__Nobody could pull off a convincing scowling face like that without being serious!'_

"Look, I'm not the guy for you, Shinobu. I don't know how I'm even your type since I'm all average and stuff, but that doesn't matter because I'm not the slightest bit interested." Sure, I hated how harsh my words were coming out, but hey, I had to speak up for myself. "You're in my class! We've never spoken a word to each other before today!" Shinobu seemed hurt by this.

"Never spoken a word?" Shinobu spat, "Don't you remember anything from the wedding?"

"Well," I started, and then suddenly realized, "No, not in particular. All I remember was you looking pretty angry for no particular reason while your sister was cutting the cake. "

Shinobu slammed his hands on the desk.

"Idiot! Don't you remember what happened**after **that?"

I slowly shook my head, surprised by his outburst.

Shinobu was ready to say something else, but at that same moment, my cell phone thankfully started ringing. I picked it up and answered.

"Hello?"

"_Misaki?"_

"Oh, nii-chan. It's you."

"_Where are you? I don't see you at the front of Mitsuhashi,"_ said Takahiro.

"Eh? You're there? Why?" I asked

"_Usagi-san fell asleep back at home shortly after you left, so I figured he wasn't going to wake up until later on today after your class was over. Besides, you have no other classes today and I'm on my lunch break, so I decided to pick you up instead!"_

"I really appreciate that, nii-chan. Sorry I'm not there at the moment. Usami-san doesn't usually pick me up until an hour or so later since we had that whole discussion about me hanging out with my friends and how I need time for them too, remember?" I explained.

"_Oh, so you did work that out!_ (Why did he sound surprised?) _Shall I come back later then?"_

"No no no! You already went through too much trouble to drive there! I might as well come home! I have a lot of homework to do anyways!" _'And I really need to get away from this weird kid staring at me,' _of course I wanted to say, but Shinobu was already looking enough like he was ready to eat me alive.

"_Okay then! I'll be here waiting!"_ They both hung up and I got up from his seat.

"Sorry about this, Takatsuki-san"-

"Shinobu-kun," he corrected me.

"Right right, but yeah my brother is waiting for me back at the school to bring me home." Shinobu eyed me suspiciously.

"Why would he feel the need to do that at this time?"

"My brother is just very over-protective like that. He still gets nervous over me crossing the street by myself," I sighed, "Thanks for the cake, by the way. Count on me paying you back, though."

"I'll walk back with you."

"It's fine, really! You don't have to!" I insisted. The last thing of course I needed was another second with this person.

"It is only my duty to accompany you, though." There was no time to argue with him over this now.

"Fine, fine," I muttered, walking out of the café' quickly, "But hurry up! His break is going to end soon!"

About another few minutes or so of running passed and we reached Mitsuhashi University. I immediately spotted my brother's car.

"There he is now!" I exclaimed, turning to Shinobu, "Well, it was nice meeting you again and"-

A piece of paper was slipped onto my hand with digits written on it.

'…_Don't tell me…'_

"Uh, Shinobu-kun, what is this?"

"What does it look like, you moron? That's my number." The car honked.

"Ah, okay then…" I ran over to my brother's car. "See you!" The car door slammed shut and I felt the urge to sink into my seat. "Hey, nii-chan."

"Welcome back," said Takahiro. He pulled out of the entrance to the school and headed for home. "So who was that boy back there? I've never seen you hang out with him before." He grinned at me wildly. "Does my Misaki have a boyfriend now?"

There was no need to scream at him to show that I was skeeved out by the suggestion.

"Nii-chan, what the hell!"

Takahiro giggled and shifted his glasses.

"I'm only teasing you, Misaki. That is, unless he really is your"-

"No, nii-chan! I'm straight! Honest! Don't joke with me like that!"

"Okay, okay I'm sorry!" he chuckled loudly, and then "Oh and, what happened to your face?"

"…It's a long story," was the only intelligent response I could muster.

And from that day on, my intentions for a "normal life" only seemed to have no chance of continuing at the pace it was going. So went forward Misaki's nineteenth year!

**A/N:**** Thank you so much for reading! I'm sad this pairing hardly gets anything (well, it's non-canon, but they really are such a fun couple with Shinobu's assertive and cowardliness and Misaki's whole denial and protesting) so I decided to be that one person to screw things up and make it this way! See you next chapter~**


	2. Act 1:2

**A/N:**** To the wonderful people who began reading this before I changed the perspective, please see the author's note at the top of the first chapter. Thank you!**

**Also, sorry this is out later than I wanted it to be. I released the first chapter a week before I went to Europe and I wanted to finish up the second one. School didn't let that happen, of course. After that I had to come home and get back into the groove of things, so here it is at last! The second chapter!**

Junjou Flame

_**Act 1**_

_**Part 2**_

**The Grass Could Be Greener**

"So tell me what this boy is like!" Takahiro said to me, giddier than I would have preferred him to be. I slumped in my chair, lowering my head a little.

"For the last time, I just met him today! You're really taking this joke too far, nii-chan…"

It was now dinner time. Akihiko had just rolled out of bed about a half an hour ago and was still grunting and groaning at the table with an indication that work was being less than kind to him. Needless to say, the guy still scares me shitless when he's not awake just yet.

And so Takahiro thought it would be a fantastic idea to enlighten his dying spirits by bringing up the man who began my nightmare. The story only brought so much as a light chuckle from the man's mouth.

"Sure, sure. That's what you'll say at first. Once you start thinking about that person, you know you're falling for them." He took a bite of his dinner and I hissed, letting my face heat.

"I don't get it! You guys never teased me about hanging around Sumi-senpai-and I mean…" Akihiko glared at me, "…When I_ did_ hang around him." His gaze relaxed a little more. Takahiro sighed.

"That's because I know that Sumi has no interest in you. He was obviously fawning over your older brother," said Akihiko.

"Usagi-san, he was asking me for a glass of water with a polite smile on his face. How many times do I have to explain this to you?"

"And did you listen carefully to the _sensual _way he asked, Takahiro?"

"'Can I have a glass of water,_ please_?'" Takahiro recited dully, "With emphasis on the 'please'. He held out his vowels a little over dramaticlly. So what?"

"But it was how he held his vowels that gave me a problem! He had that dreamy, star struck look in his eyes I give, you know? You need to keep your eyes open for those kind of guys-especially my brother."

"I'm not _that _dense!" Takahiro cried. I wanted to comment on that he doesn't realize how dense he really is as it took him at least a decade to figure out a certain someone had a crush on him-which he only found out because of me-, but I decided to let it go for tonight.

At this point I had lost all interest in their argument anyway, already predicting the end of it in which they would fuck each other silly and fall asleep precisely before my 11 o' clock bedtime (hopefully), so I cleaned off my plate and ran to my room. Since I finished all my work just before making dinner, I decided to turn on the computer wondering how to spend time relaxing for the rest of the evening as I was beat from all the work I had finished.

Finally, I decided there was no choice other than to use the instant messaging system for a little while in hopes of settling my mind a little. My eyes averted to the list of people online including those I sometimes I end up hanging around with on the weekends (reluctantly agreed to by Takahiro and Usami-san) and then Sumi-senpai's came up at the bottom. I thought perhaps he could help with my problem.

**Misa-kun90:** ah, senpai ^w^

**1Kei1:** Well, well, well; if it isn't Misaki. How are you?

I thought for a moment. What way was best to not look totally desperate in need of advice and ask for it at the same time?

**Misa-kun90:** eh, not sure

**1Kei1:** Is that so? Did something happen?

Perfect! He had taken the sympathy bait!

**Misa-kun90:** someone confessed to me this morning

**1Kei1:** Wow, how lucky! Misaki, you lady killer, you ;)

**Misa-kun90:** hey now don't use that wink-face at me! _**(Or "lady killer", but I didn't want him to lead to any unnecessary suspicions of course)**_ 'sides the feeling isn't mutual, u know?

**1Kei1:** Ah. I understand completely. It's a shame, though since you couldn't get some. Not that I was expecting you to anyway.

**Misa-kun90:** hey now whats that supposed to mean?

**1Kei1:** I'm only kidding, Misa-kun. Besides, you can always come to me if you're ever lonely ;)

**Misa-kun90:** senpaiiii ;^;

**1Kei1:** Ha, you know I love getting you flustered. _**(A little too much sometimes)**_ Anyway, I assume you rejected her?

**Misa-kun90:** yeah

**1Kei1:** Then what's there to worry about?

**Misa-kun90:** its just that i can't help but feel-oh this is odd

A new window had popped up with a buddy request. Something inside me felt chills at the mention of the name and the possibility that someone found my user without my knowledge.

**Misa-kun90:** uh, senpai

**1Kei1:** ?

**Misa-kun90:** does the name "**Nobu_Tsuki**" sound familiar?

**1Kei1:** Oh, yeah- I forgot to tell you about that. I gave your username to a friend of mine from our Literature class. Sorry I didn't mention it to you earlier. I was going to, but we already parted ways before it could happen this morning.

I sighed in relief. It seemed I wasn't being stalked by a certain someone after all.

**Misa-kun90:** that's alright, senpai! i was just curious. he's added on my buddy list now :)

**1Kei1:** Thank you. The poor kid needs more friends, so I'm really trying to help him out, you know?

**Misa-kun90:** wah, youre so nice, senpai ^w^

**1Kei1:** Aw, come on. It's just a simple deed.

Inspired enough to commit a friendly act on my own, I made the move to introduce myself.

**Misa-kun90: **hi!

**Nobu_Tsuki:** Oh, hello there.

**Misa-kun90:** nice to meet u. my name is misaki takahashi. have we met?

**Nobu_Tsuki:** Yes we have and honestly I'm surprised you added me.

**Misa-kun90:** eh? why do u say that?

**Nobu_Tsuki:** Well, considering how weird you were acting today…

Two and two were put together in my mind suddenly and I instantly c licked back on to Sumi's window.

**Misa-kun90:** senpai

**1Kei1:** Yes?

**Misa-kun90:** who exactly is **Nobu_Tsuki **anyway?

**1Kei1:** Shinobu Takatsuki from our class. I'm sure you remember him

**Misa-kun90**: …oh _**(And that I unfortunately did)**_

**1Kei1:** Doesn't the "Nobu" and "Tsuki" sound familiar now? Anyways, I've gotta go. Tell Usami-sensei I read his newest release. I'm honestly not sure what to think about it...

**1Kei1:** I'll see you tomorrow :D

**Misa-kun90:** wait, senpai!

_-__**1Kei1 **__is offline-_

Defeated, I closed out of that chat and went back to the other.

**Misa-kun90:** ohhhh that? well don't worry about it. anyways I have to go. kamijou-sensei assigned a killer i better take care of. goodnight

**Nobu_Tsuki:** Can at least talk to you for a moment?

_-__**Misa-kun90**__ is offline-_

I shut down the IM system was quickly as possible. At that same moment, a sudden need for sleep overwhelmed me and even through sleep, I could not relax.

And I think that had something to do with the **wailing** down the hall. Or the constant springing of the bed that was the equivalent for me scratching a chalkboard.

The next morning promised to be a better one.

Usami had woken up by the time I was ready for university and Takahiro to leave. We didn't talk in the car at all except when he said that he was going to pick me up later.

Once I stepped out of the car, Sumi was already waiting for me at the entrance of the school. The stalker didn't appear to be in sight even as we separated ways for our different class. T-minus 3 days until the next time Literature class meets.

After the lecture, I went to go meet Sumi at the lunch hall. I had another lecture coming up, so it was better to grab a bite before going.

When I walked in, I immediately noticed him sitting at one of the tables talking with someone while his cell phone was out.

"Here's the number. If I see him, I'll tell-Ah, Misaki," Sumi said, turning to me, smirking, "Speak of the Devil and he shall appear."

"Eh? You were talking about me?"

"Just about your charming good looks, of course." He glanced at the man next to him. "Isn't that right, Shinobu-kun?"

And then the moment I noticed him, my face turned paler than a bleached Suzuki-san (which Usami didn't let me hear the end of since I accidentally ruined one of his many cloned precious teddy bears).

"Oh, since you're here, I might as well introduce you. Anyways, this is the guy you added last night."

"Yes, I know him!" I seethed, leaning forward to whisper in his ear, "But when did you two become friends?"

"Yesterday, actually. He came up to me on campus before I had my next class and we talked for a while. Then I just gave him my number just now along with yours"-

"**What? But why**?" I asked, not intending it to be so loud. Sumi raised his hands.

"Calm down, Misaki. He just needs some friends and I thought you two would be a good _match_ is all," he assured me, maintaining his whisper.

"Listen, Senpai, there's something I have to tell you." My eyes immediately traveled back to Shinobu, who was standing a few inches away from us. "…Later." Sumi smiled.

"Now then!" he wrapped an arm around the both of us, "Let's hang before class starts!"

Badly as I wanted to make an objection, the fact that Sumi was there gave me a relief that there was no chance Shinobu would make any "odd" move.

They talked about all different kinds of things- parents, college, siblings, the question of who was better looking and other typical nonsense in a mere five minutes. Then Sumi suddenly got up from his chair and began to walk away.

"Eh? Senpai?" I leaned forward. "Where are you going?"

"I have class now," said Sumi, waving at us as he began to head outside, "Don't miss me too much, you guys!"

And then a wave of awkwardness swept over me. I'm not sure whether Shinobu felt it or not, but if he did, I wasn't able to notice.

"…So…uh…"

"Can you recall anything yet?"

"Excuse me?"

"About the wedding," said Shinobu as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"…No. Nothing, really," I answered, then asked, "How is your sister by the way? Yo Miyagi is treating her well?"

"They divorced." I gasped.

"Oh…how terrible! I'm sorry!"

"Not to worry. It was about a year ago. They both moved on." He had spat those last words a bit coldly. "What about your brother and Usami-sensei? How are they?" My face turned a bright red.

"Wh-what the hell are you trying to say about my brother?" Shinobu folded his hands together and leaned forward.

"Wasn't it obvious? They were pretty much all over each other at the wedding."

"B-but they were probably drunk!" I exclaimed quickly. Shinobu huffed.

"You seem very proud of your own stupid lie." Just as I was going to question how Shinobu knew about their relationship, my phone rang once again mid-conversation. I quickly got up from the lunch table and moved to a quiet spot to answer without even apologizing for the interruption.

"Hello?"

_ "Misaki-kun?"_

"Ah, Aikawa-san! How are you?"

_"Stressed, of course,"_ she muttered, _"And that's all because of a certain Usami-sensei! Speaking of him, are you home?"_

"No, I'm still here at the university. Sorry. Why, do you need something?" I asked.

_ "Tell Usami-sensei to answer his cell for once and to finish his manuscript! The deadline is tomorrow…"_

"Alright, I'll give him the message." We both hung up and just as I was about to head to the table, I noticed Shinobu wasn't there._ 'Could he have left?'_

"Who was that?" Every hair on my body pricked.

"WERE YOU LISTENING IN ON MY CONVERSATION?" I screamed, backing away from Shinobu who did not seem the least startled.

"…No. I was just wondering what the urgent call was for." Oh yeah. I left him behind at the table. …That was still pretty creeper-like of him to just stalk behind me like that.

"That was Aikawa-san!" That response wasn't enough to satisfy him.

"Okay. And why was she calling your phone?"

_'What am I supposed to say now?_' I asked myself, _'If I say she's Akihiko's editor, I give my brother away!'_ My face heated when I realized that there was one option left to choose. "…Because she's my girlfriend." Shinobu's face remained indifferent.

"Girlfriend?"

"Yeah!"

"But when we spoke yesterday, you mentioned nothing about a girlfriend. In fact, I thought I already proved you didn't have one."

"You didn't prove anything!" I shouted and then proudly, "Besides, she and I have been going off for a little while now and in fact, we just got back together last night!" Shinobu's eyes shifted towards mine.

"Is that so? Tell me all about her then."

"What exactly do you want to know?"

"How old is she, for a start?" Shit. I completely forgot her age. Although, if I recall, she was around the same age as nii-chan…

"She's an _older _woman," I said simply.

"So it's**that **kind of relationship?"

"Wh-what? No! Not at all! She and I pretty close, you know? She always visits and brings me something from the bakery everyday! One time she even made me a bento!" That was half true-especially the bento part. Albeit the bento was store-bought, but it still tasted pretty good.

"Aikawa-san sounds more like a sister than a lover. Even a baby-sitter sounds more suitable."

"Hey! You don't know anything about this!"

"Oi! Misaki!" a voice in the distance called, "Let's get going!"

I turned to see a familiar gray silhouette standing in the entrance way of the cafeteria.

"…Is that Usami-san?" asked Shinobu.

"Uhh… Is it already that time? Boy, I better go! See ya, Shinobu!" Without giving him a chance to say something, I fled towards Akihiko, for once happy to see him. "What's with the entry? I thought you were gonna call me when you're here."

"No good. I lost my phone." I stared at him with disbelief.

"You_ lost_ it!"

"I'll get a new one in a few days." Something told me that he definitely did it to piss off Aikawa/avoid her.

"Fine. Let's just go."

While ignoring the gape of mouths and eye widening stares of having been escorted by the Lord Usami, he glanced at me and noticed immediately I was more tense than usual.

"So, was that the Shinobu Takahiro mentioned to me yesterday?"

"…Yeah, he is." There was no point in denying it.

"I see. He seems like a good kid-a serious child, but nonetheless, a good kid."

"Usami-san," I found courage to build up the question slowly, "Since you're all famous and stuff, I'm sure you've had plenty of people ask you out, right-specifically ones you weren't interested in."

"Correction, I wasn't interested in** any** of them. They weren't interested in me once they tried to get close either or when I rejected them. Why do you ask?" His cold demeanor told me he definitely wouldn't understand.

"…I was just wondering is all."

We didn't speak for the rest of the journey home. I was already exhausted, so I didn't even bother to get on the computer. Instead I slumped on my bed that was more comfortable than usual and was preparing to nestle in it comfortably for a nap.

And then something in my pocket vibrated. I sluggishly went to grab it and answered. On the screen was an unfamiliar number.

"Yeah?"

"Is this a bad time? There was something I forgot to ask you earlier." Shit. I forgot Sumi gave him the number.

"Sorry. I can't…Aikawa-san is here. Goodnight."

"Wait-wasn't that Usami-sensei I saw you with earlier? Why was he picking you up?"

"I'm sorry, Shinobu-kun. I can't talk to you right now." I hung up right away, embarrassed about my easily exposed lie.

It was an odd, disgusting feeling to say the least. I didn't like Shinobu-not one ioda. At the same time, I felt kind of bad. Like Sumi said, it seemed like this guy didn't have any friends. I didn't either when I first started college and even then Sumi was the first to rescue me from loneliness. Besides, I had completely ruled out the possibility of him being part of the yakuza (several times, but then I put it back on the list in case). How bad could this kid possibly be?

Then there was also the fact that I pretty much dug into quite a lie ready to be dug out. I didn't think Aikawa-san would be thrilled about the idea of me choosing her as my "pretend" girlfriend or rejecting a gay relationship (being given how ridiculous she could be as a BL fangirl). Nor did I think denying Takahiro being with Usami would be something he would enjoy either (being as I'm the one who actually looks after his orientation).

Yet in the end, was I really working myself up over nothing? I was letting this guy-some random forest fire practically take control of every move I make since my actions revolved around avoiding coming in close contact with him.

**So much for trying to extinguish that burning flame.**


	3. Act 1:3

Junjou Flame

_**Act 1**_

_**Part 3**_

**Take Note of the Caution Sign**

In the end, I couldn't sleep off the stress after turning off my phone no matter how long I stayed in my room.

Even Takahiro seemed to notice a slight slump in my usual energetic attitude. He asked me what was wrong and I told him I was busy (thinking). Then he decided to let me go of questioning.

"Misaki," he said, "Just to let you know, we're having company tomorrow."

"Eh? Who is it?" I questioned curiously.

"A friend of Akihiko's. Remember that wedding we went to?" I had been referring back to that for the past few days.

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well, we went because Usami and I knew one of the guests since high school and he's coming over tomorrow along with another man and someone he's taking care of. I heard it's his ex-nephew or son, but I'm not sure." That was an odd crowd.

"…Okay, but it doesn't really make any sense."

"That's true," he smiled, "But I think it's just a way of bragging about his new boyfriend _(I flinched)_ ahead of time that we have yet to meet before the ceremony. The younger one is just tagging along because the two of them practically live together since his father doesn't really care to deal with him much and apparently he is a fan of Akihiko's work. He's also a literature fanatic."

"Oh. I understand." Another question pulsed in my brain. "Wait-ceremony!" My face flushed. Was the wedding coming up that quickly? They never said anything and I hadn't even started packing my stuff yet!

"You didn't hear? Usami won a Kikukawa Award. We're celebrating next month at… I think the Teito Hotel, but I'm not sure about the details, yet. Just whatever you do, don't tell him about any of this. You know how much hates those kinds of parties," he reminded me.

"Alright, I won't. I just feel bad that I didn't even hear about it or congratulate him."

"We can give him a present on the day of the ceremony if you want although honestly, I thought you don't even like him."

"…Alright, I'm not _that _crazy about him," I admitted sheepishly, "But I know you both love each other and he treats you well. That's enough of a reason to like him so I figure I should give him some sort of appreciation." I had to admit, the big smile he gave me was something I hadn't seen on his face in a good while.

"Th-thank you, Misaki!" he beamed, "I wonder what we should get him. Hmm… A watch? No, that's stupid. He already got me one for my birthday. Another Suzuki?" It was also just as uplifting to see him get flustered as he tried to contain his excitement even as he walked out of my room, still muttering a bunch of gibberish under his breath in excitement. Geez, all I did was say something simple like that to his face and it made him so… happy. I couldn't remember the last time I did something like that. In fact, I thought this was the first instance where I did something and it gave me a little joy of my own on the inside. I couldn't think of another time I felt that way either.

See, the thing I notice more and more about myself is that I speak my mind. A lot.

I'm not afraid to yell at people or defend myself and others or admit that something is wrong. **It's something I'm proud and ashamed of at the same time.**

People say it's childish. Others call it being obnoxious. Sometimes it's a wonder to me how Sumi could put up with my immaturity or why Usami hasn't wrung my neck yet. It makes me think that Shinobu was still persistent because he didn't take notice of that terrible trait just yet since it seems to make more enemies than friends. The sad part of it is that I really do try to consider other people's feelings.

Take for example the wedding I went to.

I went to the bathroom after the cake was cut and just as I was about to open the stall, the main door slammed against the wall and a man rushed into an unused one. I washed my hands, all the while thinking to myself how someone must really have needed to go to the bathroom.

While drying my hands, I thought for a moment that the machine wasn't working since I heard a low, fuzzy sound. I pulled my hands away and the noise didn't stop. That's when I realized it.

'_Shit, he's crying.'_ I knocked on the thick wall. "Oi, are you alright in there?"

"No! Go away!" he sniffled. He obviously chose the "be difficult" tactic. I tried again.

"Come on, it's a party. You're supposed to have fun and last time I checked, crying in a bathroom stall isn't exactly fun."

"Sh-shut up! Wh-who said I was crying?"

"You're stuttering, your voice is shaking and it sounds vaguely similar to bawling. To be honest, you're not exactly good at keeping your tears quiet," I laughed nervously.

"What, are you going to give me a **lecture** on how to cry or is my Father going to have to do that too?" He remained silent for a few seconds. "J-Just go away. It doesn't concern you…"

"Now who said that? There you are on the other side of this door obviously depressed about something and I figure I better make good use of myself since I'm here." I leaned against the stall door. "So... you mentioned something about your dad."

I expected him to say "mind your own business" or something along those lines, but instead he went on to tell me the truth within staggering gulps of air.

"…S-since it's a wedding and stuff, my Father decided to talk to me yet again about the future and university and the life I'm going to live with a t-trophy wife and a bunch of drooling kids in a beautiful Victorian home with the perfect j-job as a lawyer in order to support my wonderful family and whatnot," he explained.

"That doesn't sound so bad. It's a little on the unrealistic side, but I'm sure your Father is just looking out for you because he wants what's best for his son," I said.

"I know, but just…he doesn't understand! First off, I don't **w-want **to be a lawyer! I want to be a literature professor or just s-something to do with the major. Why should I have to be a l-lawyer just because my Dad tells me to be? That doesn't even interest me, but literature? That's my **p-passion**!"

"Maybe you could just major in Law and minor in Literature?"

"B-but it's…not enough. I want to be more involved in Literature than that," he said, "And then that whole thing with the wife and kids-how the hell am I supposed to do that when I just can't get a girl? They f-flirt with me and try to d-date me, but I just see no interest in them! Maybe I haven't found the right one? I'm just weird, I don't know! I have the grades, but I suck at everything else that's important! How the hell am I supposed to take care of a family or even m-myself?"

"I think you should stop worrying so much," I said, "It's your life. You should live it the way you want to and stressing over the major blocks in your path isn't going to help you. In fact, it will make it worse. Should you think about those things? Yeah, you should but not to the point where it gets in the way of what you want to do."

"T-that's not so easy as you think…"

"Well, yeah of course not. I struggle to do that too sometimes, especially since I'm not that smart. Your dad wants you to be happy, right? Once you know what you want to do in life and you truly show it, he might back off."

"A-all I know is I want to do something with Literature."

"And that's a start! You'll pick up the rest of the missing pieces along the way." I felt pretty proud of myself for saying that. For once, I said something that I thought was intelligent and helpful for another person-enough to make his life possibly brighter.

After a small moment of silence (minus the loud sniffling), he lowly muttered a question. "What's that?"

"What is your name?" he asked again. I removed my shoulder from the wall and tried to get a glimpse of him in between the crack of the stall bordering the next.

"Takahashi Misaki," I answered casually.

"Takahashi Misaki," he repeated slowly, letting the words syllables fall off of his tongue. Almost a little too eagerly, I waited for a friendly "thank you" or some sort of nice verbal gesture and instead I got-

"You are an idiot."

That was all I got. They were four little grunted words that hinted no remorse for being uttered with a pretty damn big impact.

"Well…okay then," was all I could say. I was too shocked to even yell at him for improperly thanking me for the pep talk and just left the bathroom speechless.

From time to time I had wondered if that guy ever lived happily after that conversation and if he ever thought about me, but then I easily pushed that to the back of my mind when I recalled those four words.

"_You are an idiot."_

**I guess I was an idiot for caring.** He was a stranger that had a face I couldn't see and I was expecting him as a gentleman to respect me for helping him. Or maybe my advice really was stupid in the end.

But presently, I guess I felt better and more determined to keep true to what I said. I wanted to appreciate Usami, but how? I had no idea what the hell he wanted other than complete possession of my brother's body. I wasn't sure if he would even want another child's play set of toys (but then again, the man never failed to surprise me).

For now the best idea seemed to be putting it off for a little later before hitting the store with Takahiro and prepare dinner instead.

The next morning felt fresh as a Wednesday should-calm and quick. I had no classes, so I decided to go out shopping for a little bit while Takahiro had work and Usami was busy scribbling in the dungeon until heading towards the living room where he ended up falling asleep. Since company was due to arrive later on (dinnertime, according to Usami), I figured it would be good to prepare dinner for the guests. I made my list and headed off to the local supermarket.

As I headed from aisle to aisle, I stopped the cart when I noticed a familiar face strolling down by the fruit stand. And unfortunately he saw me as well.

"Misaki," he said, "What a coincidence." At least he didn't say something stupid like "destiny" or I think I would literally have had a heart attack.

"Shinobu-kun, what are you doing here?"

"Shopping," he answered, casually taking a few ripe bananas and putting them in the cart, "Duh. I'm sure that's why you're here too?" I nodded slowly.

"I'm making dinner tonight."

"Do you do that often?"

"Yeah. Nobody else in the house can cook accept for me. It's also a hobby of mine," I said.

"So it is." He looked back at the fruit stand. "Do you like bananas?" The odd question that came out of nowhere threw me off for a second, but then I realized that he was referring to his own cart.

"I do, but not as much as watermelon. It's my favorite."

"Hmm… I'll get one then." He lifted a large watermelon with his hands, struggling to cradle it and gently put it in the cart. He opened his mouth to say something else that I expected to be to or about me or my brother, but instead fixed his already fine chestnut hair in impulse.

"Well, then. I'll see you later." And like that, he moved off to a different aisle just when the aura shifted.

By the time I got back, I was greeted with a plastic bag sitting on the counter and a red-haired woman that sat on a lounge chair across from the resting Usami with a purse sitting by her side.

"Misaki-kun, it's good to see you. The bag is for you and your brother to share," she said.

"Thanks, Aikawa-san!" I took a peek at the contents of the bag. It was creampuffs. Takahiro wasn't that big on them so it looked like they were all mine. I put them in the fridge along with the other goods I bought. That sounded like a suitable dessert for later if any of the guests liked sweets at all, I decided.

Now, I know it sounds odd to find a pretty woman such as Aikawa Eri randomly in your house after stepping outside for a while, but it's quick to adjust. Besides, she had her own key to get in the house after multiple times where Usami couldn't be reached and was found sprawled upon the floor sick because he had overworked himself and didn't bother with going to a doctor. Of course, he now has Takahiro and I to look after him, but we can't be home all the time to "baby-sit" and sometimes the man was just plainly unpredictable in whatever he did.

Take for example the onetime Aikawa nearly caught him putting a metal container with a fork sticking out of an uncovered left-over meal from the night before or every other time she came to press Usami about the deadlines he tried to avoid.

"Did he fall asleep before your classes, Misaki?"

"I didn't have any classes today," I told her, "So instead I went shopping about an hour and a half ago for tonight. Usami fell asleep a little before then."

"Ugh… He's not gonna wake up for another hour at least then!"

"Are you going to stay then?"

"Of course I am! I'm his editor and I need to get that manuscript today!" she said with a hint of authority, "…Plus he hasn't been answering his cell phone. I have a feeling he has some _ingenious_ excuse about that too." It's easy to tell that she had been working as Usami's editor for quite a while now.

I glanced at the clock. It was nearly three.

"I'm sure you'll be a while even after he wakes up. Would you like to stay for dinner, then? I bought plenty of food," I offered.

"Oh, I don't know… Didn't you already say company is coming later?"

"It's fine! I have more than enough, really."

"Well, alright then! I can't turn down an offer like that!"

She and I talked on for another while until the beast himself had awoken. They began their manuscript readings so I prepared dinner and went back to my room where I stayed to finish up Kamijou-sensei's assignment. I put on the chat system as well just in case if I needed to ask Sumi any questions.

**1Kei1:** And that's the outline attached. Honestly, Misaki, did you read the book carefully?  
**Misa-kun90:** …japanese isnt my best subject… especially literature

**1Kei1:** As expected of Economic Major-san.

**Misa-kun90:** y do u always say that like its a bad thing? ;-;

**1Kei1:** I'm kidding, I'm kidding! Anyway, do you have anymore questions?

**Misa-kun90:** no im fine. i have guests coming over soon anyway so ill have to do it later

**1Kei1:** Guests? Who's coming?

The obnoxious swipe of the front door opening and a rush of a few different footsteps hinted that company had arrived.

**Misa-kun90:** sorry, theyre here! i better get going. see ya senpai! ^w^

**1Kei1:** Good luck.

I got off the computer and onto my feet before smoothing out my hair and clothes, feeling tidy and ready enough to present myself.

"Hiro-kun, right this way!" I heard Takahiro say.

"… Damn you rich people. Every time I look at this place it gets even bigger!" I'd heard that voice before.

"Welcome to _my_ world," Aikawa sighed.

"Really? I honestly think that we need more space," Usami chimed in.

"Another room!" was the man's question. "What are you planning on buying now?" was my brother's.

"Did I ever tell you I've always wanted to walk around Osaka? I might want to buy something from there."

"Planning on buying 'marimo', are you?" came an unfamiliar one.

"Maybe," was Usami's vague answer.

I got a little closer to the secluded group talking among themselves. The man seemed a little taller than me with messy brown hair and the one who I assumed to be his partner had jet black hair with a height similar to Takahiro's and possibly Usami's. I slowly stepped into the kitchen where they were.

"Well, it seems we have someone else here," the black hair man looked directly at me. The brunette tensed.

"You're my student!"

"Kamijou-sensei!" I gasped, "Eh, Takahiro, I didn't know you were friends with **him**!" Sensei crossed his arms.

"You make it sound like it's a bad thing."

"No! No, you just surprised me is all! I just… couldn't recognize him without his glasses!" I quickly blurted, praying that he didn't know where the knife drawer was. The black haired man moved forward and shook my hand.

"Nice to meet ya, kid. The name's Yo Miyagi." Where had I heard that name before? "I think I've seen you somewhere."

"He came with us to your wedding," said Usami. My face fell.

'_His wedding? Wait, could it mean that'-_

"Now I remember!" he exclaimed, craning his neck out of the open door, "Oi, Shinobu! Are you up yet?"

'_Shit. I'm right.'_

He came inside with a large container covered in tin foil in his hands with an unidentifiable object inside. The guy didn't even flinch when he laid eyes on me. Something even angrier than before bubbled up inside of me.

"There you are," Miyagi said, taking the container, "If it was that heavy, you really should have just let me carry it." He dragged Shinobu over to where I stood. "Shinobu, this is… uh…"

"Takahashi Misaki," Shinobu added, "I know him. He's in my Literature class."

"That's even better. I assume you two are already acquainted with each other then." I wasn't sure if acquainted was exactly the right word, but I somehow managed to keep my mouth shut.

"Well, I guess you two will just play nicely then, eh?"

"We're not children, Miyagi," Shinobu grunted. Miyagi had dismissed the response. Shinobu came closer to me. "Misaki, who is that?" He pointed to the red head.

"Her? That's Aikawa-I mean… Eri-chan!" Aikawa's ears perked up at this.

"Eri-chan?"

"Oh, so she's that **girlfriend **you mentioned." Everyone else stared back at me with suspicion. Suddenly I had lost my dying grasp of sanity.

"Misaki, did you just call me 'Eri-chan'?"

"Uh… nii-chan, tell me when you're ready for me to heat dinner, okay? We'll be in my room," I told him. I grabbed Shinobu's arm by the sleeve and dragged him furiously down the hall.

"Have fun!" Usami called after us. I could sense that he was laughing at us on the inside.

I closed the door and sat on the bed.

"Nice place you got here," Shinobu remarked, "It's small, but it's decent."

"Alright, Shinobu, just what the hell is your problem?"

"What? I like your room."

"I'm not talking about that!" I shouted, "You're practically stalking me!"

"Stalking? Me? What makes you think that?" I wasn't sure whether he was playing innocent or was totally oblivious to fathom how much I wanted to punch him in the face.

"You came to my home without even telling me, for one!"

"So? I came simply because Nowaki doesn't like it when I'm home alone since he's afraid I'm going to blow up our apartment. I'm also pretty sure I kind of hinted it to you that I was coming and even so, I wanted to take the opportunity to meet Usami-sensei face to face," he explained.

"That's bullshit! I'll bet you haven't read one of his books!"

"On the contrary, I've read every single one to date."

"But you knew that I'm living with Usami-san!" I accused.

"How was I supposed to know that? In fact, you never told me," said Shinobu, "In fact, you even denied it."

"I denied that he was having a relationship with my brother!"

"Which was another lie, if I may remind you. It's suspicious that two grown men are living together in a place such as this. Besides, Hiro told me about them. Do you have any other examples of me 'stalking' you?" I groaned loudly, tugging at my own hair in agitation.

"Well, you got Sumi to give my number and instant messenger name to you."

"It's your fault for adding me without knowing who I was. Also, Sumi offered your number. I didn't even ask for it."

"Now why would he do something like that?"

"He thought it would be funny," he replied simply.

"Whatever!" I rolled my eyes, "I still don't believe you."

"It's because of my confession, isn't it?"

Ding ding ding! He finally figured it out!

"Duh! Of course that's why I would think this way!"

"Why should you have to?" Yet again, he had stumped me totally.

"I…I don't know." _'What the hell is he talking about?' _"It's just so… out of the blue. It's weird. You're gay and just…"

"And it's also because I'm gay."

"Right!" I paused, and then quickly took it back. "No, no wait! I didn't mean that! I meant"-

"That's an odd thing to assume, isn't it?" he asked me, completely monotone, "Just because I like another man doesn't mean any of those things. They're all more than coincidence." Shinobu drew closer to me. "Do you know why?" Damn, the way he stared at me like that scared me even more than Kamijou-sensei does on a daily basis!

"…N-no…"

"It's destiny." **Those words had set a fire within me. I wanted to scream. **He had made his case and point so clearly and convincing through all of this and then I found that I couldn't trust his motives again.

"Okay, you know what?" I snapped, "Get out of my room! Just get **out**!"

"You think your mind is like a brick wall? All I see is glass! You're that easy to see through, Takahashi Misaki!"

"After tonight, I want you to stay away from me, my brother, Sumi-senpai and hell, even Usami-san!"

"Y-you're an inconsiderate bastard, you know that? You never even b-bothered to ask why I love you!" Shinobu screamed, trying to hold back tears, "Goddammit… I thought you were d-different! Those things that you said to me…" He opened the door and turned his head back to me one more time. "You're an idiot!" And the door slammed.

At first I couldn't believe what I heard.

'_Me? Inconsiderate? What kind of joke is that?' _He barely even knew me and he was pulling this destiny crap! It didn't mean I had to be with him. There was no reason for trying to force me and going through my family and friends. Why couldn't he just find someone else?

But even though I was angry, it kind of hurt. Really badly.

What if he was telling me the truth after all?

What if he was just lonely as Sumi made him out to be? _'Oh God… I was just mad because he invaded my personal bubble… I didn't want to make him cry!'_

I stepped back into the kitchen. Everyone sat around the table and Kamijou-sensei, or Hiro, was the first to spot me.

"Oi, did something happen with Shinobu? He said he had to finish an assignment, but he seemed pretty upset when he ran out."

'So he went home after all.' "It's…nothing. It was just something he had to do for Literature." It was a lie, but he seemed to accept it right away.

**A/N:**** Wow, this was longer than I intended it to be .-. Sorry about that and thank you for reading! Hopefully the next chapter won't take as long 83**


	4. Act 1:4

**A/N:**** Just something I wanted to inform the readers; if an entire sentence is bolded, it's actually an imitation of those on screen words that appear at certain times during the show-like for example a heated moment or something romantic. Just letting you know in case you thought I was a weirdo or something for randomly bolding sentences. (Not that I'm not a weirdo, but you know~)**

**And also, thank you so much to those who have been reading and reviewing this! I can't repay you enough! ;w;**

Junjou Flame

_**Act 1**_

**Part 4**

**Back Doors are not for Minds**

Dinner was a drag. And I'm not just saying that because a squealing and awe-struck Aikawa (which made me feel better since she wasn't ripping off my head) and I were the only ones not making cute and cuddly kissy gestures (minus Sensei growling like a demon whenever Miyagi flirted with him). Rather, it was the outburst at Shinobu that made the wonderfully glazed sukiyaki I prepared look totally unappetizing despite everyone (even Sensei, who was surprised) complimenting me on the dish.

I wanted to slam my hands on the table and scream. So what if I could cook? Big deal. **I made him cry and I felt disgusting and unworthy of any praise**. And I wondered if anyone sitting at the table could read my ready -to-explode aura. Maybe they knew and tried to make me feel better by telling me I did something right. I mean, that whole thing was pretty loud.

"_You're an idiot!"_

Yeah, I'm pretty sure they didn't miss **that** bit. Yet they didn't question. Instead they ate sukiyaki, kept their mouths shut and still didn't bother to say anything during dessert.

"Where's that box Shinobu brought in?" asked Sensei. Miyagi got up from his seat.

"I think it's in the fridge. I'll get it," he offered.

"You'll probably need a knife to open that," Takahiro reminded him, then looked at me. "Misaki, can you get one for him?" I obeyed his order and followed Miyagi to the counter. I opened up the drawer and handed him the knife.

"Here you go."

"Thanks," he said, taking it gladly, "I'm sorry you and Shinobu don't get along that well. _(Aha! So he did know!)_ I would have thought for sure you two would have made good friends considering you knew each other."

"W-well…" I was careful with my choice of words. "It's just…complicated, you know? I mean-he's a very complicated person." Miyagi laughed.

"Believe me; he's been with Hiro and me for a good while. Sometimes I don't know what goes through that kid's head. What's even stranger is that despite his untraceable thinking, the kid is very direct. He doesn't beat around the bush." There was no doubt about that. He came right out saying that he had fell in love with me.

"You seem to really care about him, Miyagi-sensei," I said.

"That I do," he nodded, "The kid's the son I never had." And that conversation ended there.

Then I found another way to worm into another one. It was an odd question, but enough to get us going. Staying silent would make me stand out.

"Miyagi-sensei, why is Shinobu living with you if he's your ex-wife's brother?" Takahiro gave me a concerned look from across the room when he heard this.

"Misaki…"

"No, it's okay. I don't blame him for thinking its pretty weird." He took the box and began to open it slowly as he talked. "The reason why he's with me is because I'm a Literature professor and the kid is obsessed with studying it."

"So he's your student in a sense?" I questioned.

"No, I wouldn't say that I let him stay with me as an underling. I let him stay because he doesn't really get along well with his family and they entrusted me with him. Even so his relationship with them got to the point where he attended an academy all the way in Australia. It's unfortunate. They're probably not going to resolve their issues anytime soon it seems." I bowed my head.

'_A school in Australia? It was that bad? He never mentioned anything about Australia.'_ Because I never asked.

Miyagi took a look at my face and laughed. "Now look at what I did. I got you all curious!" I nodded shyly. "Well, let's just say his father wanted him to go one way and Shinobu decided to go his direction."

"_I don't __**w-want **__to be a lawyer! I want to be a literature professor or just s-something to do with the major. Why should I have to be a l-lawyer just because my Dad tells me to be? That doesn't even interest me, but literature? That's my __**p-passion**__!"_

My mind found its way back to that memory. That person felt the exact same thing-being torn between two decisions. Did his father accept it? Did he go on doing what he loved best?

"Oh, and Misaki," Miyagi said, interrupting my thoughts, "There's something else you should know."

"What is it?" He gave me a small, lighthearted smile that gave me chills instead of warmth.

"You really saved him that night." I opened my mouth to say something but he stopped me. "It's exactly what you're thinking."

Suddenly everything made sense.

His emphasis on the wedding. The reason why he looked so cross during the ceremony. The reason why he came on to me out of nowhere. His emphasis on remembering the wedding. The reason why he thought we destined to be together. And most importantly, the wedding.

Because after the wedding, his life changed. And it was because of me.

For the better?

Shinobu got to do what he wanted, but his family resented him for being "rebellious". Yet he seemed to be doing well living with Miyagi, who is looking out for him as best as he can.

Was he happy?

The only thing missing in the picture was me. He wanted me to be a part of it and I wouldn't go along with it because I couldn't understand his motives. And I took out that frustration on him.

Miyagi sliced open the box with the knife I gave him.

"You didn't know? That's a surprise. I honestly would have thought you'd figure it out on your own." I lowered my head and he moved away a little as if expecting an eruption. "Could you…get me a dish?"

I did just that and promptly ran to my room after peering into the box. Takahiro spotted me and said something, but I tuned him out completely. I also think Aikawa might have yelled to me something about how she's into men around her age. Nobody came to knock on my door with questions.

The first thing I did was go on the computer. He wasn't online, so that was useless.

Desperately I dumped my laundry basket onto the floor and picked up any pair of jeans I could find, searching every pocket I could until I found a slip of paper. It was Shinobu's number. Texting I felt was more impersonal than using the actual phone itself in this situation, so I decided to call.

I wasted no time to dial the number and eagerly waited for it to go through.

"_Hello. This is Shinobu."_ My heart jolted.

"Shinobu? This is Misaki. I just wanted to"-

"_I am not available right now. Please leave a message after the beep or text me. I will get back to you either way."_ The tone beeped. _'I really should have stuck to texting.'_

"Uh, Shinobu…" I started to lose my voice. "…This is Misaki. I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for what I said. Can we talk about this in school? Please call back." And I hung up. I laid in bed, waiting with the phone clutched in my hand. He never called.

Needless to say, I didn't have any watermelon that night.

I woke up the next morning to loud banging on my door.

"Misaki," Usami's gruff voice pounded from the other side, "Are you going to school? It's already 8!" I rolled out of bed and stretched to find I was still wearing the same clothes from yesterday and my phone sitting next to my pillow. That and my eyes were burning from either lack of sleep or crying.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming." I grabbed my clothes and took a quick, thorough shower. Breakfast was late, but prepared just a half an hour before Takahiro and I would have to leave.

The moment I got to Mitsuhashi, I started looking around for Shinobu between crowds of people.

Someone touched my shoulder. I jumped, at the same time hoping it was Shinobu who came to say that he had heard his voice mail.

Instead it was Sumi hovering over me far into my personal bubble.

"Why the long face, Misaki? You're not happy to see me?" he asked, nearing his head close to mine. I lightly pushed him away.

"No, Senpai! Of course not! I'm just looking for Shinobu. Have you seen him?" Sumi shook his head.

"I haven't. I'm not even sure if he has classes on Thursdays," Senpai answered, "If you want to talk to him, why don't you just-oh, look over there!"

He pointed to a nearby crowd where a familiar dirty blond was nearing towards us. I ran ahead of Senpai before he could say anything.

As I got closer I noticed that Shinobu wasn't looking ahead of him and rather to a man next to him-a freakishly tall one with sunny hair and purple eyes.

"Oi! Shinobu!" I called to him.

The pair cut a corner away from me, not even sending a glance at me.

And I was left standing with a sharp pang of anger and jealousy. For once Sumi had a confused look on his face.

"That was pretty cold," he commented, "They just like, ignored you. Did something happen?" I took one look back at them.

"No, nothing happened."

When I got back home, I saw Aikawa standing at the doorway with folded arms. What I didn't understand was why she didn't just use her key and head inside the apartment.

"Aikawa-san! Are you waiting for Usami get to home or something?" I asked her.

"No. I was just stopping by. There was something I had to tell you- and I felt it was better to do it in person." Something about her tone made me a little nervous.

"What is it?"

"While I'm flattered that you have a crush on me, calling me your girlfriend is pretty low. The least you could have done was ask me beforehand!" she said, then in a hushed, seductive whisper, "But while I can't take up your offer now, if you still feel the same way when you're twenty five, give me a call." And she walked away.

From there I wasn't sure whether to be utterly disgusted or charmed by her. Not that I ever really pictured myself with her, but she was really pretty…

When I stepped inside I habitually checked my phone again. Despite the sound being on and there being no ring, I made sure there was no missed call.

I went back online after being disappointed and frustrated once again. He still wasn't online.

Something had to be done about this, I realized, and fast. If I didn't I was sure that my stability would diminish to nothing.

'_At least I see him in Literature,'_ I thought, _'Maybe I can talk to him then.'_ Another thought hit me like a bearalanche. _'Wait… Crap! Sensei's paper is due tomorrow! I better work on that!'_

So I was then kept busy with that for another few hours.

Just as I typed the last key on the paper and saved it, the front door slammed hard enough for me to feel the vibrations of it from the kitchen. And then Usami shouted.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to do that, Takahiro? My **God**!" Curiously, I opened the door and peeked at them through the hallway.

"Usagi, you act like I'm going to leave you the moment someone shows me affection!" Takahiro lifted his ring finger. "You see this diamond? It means that we're one step closer to marriage and when we get married, we're staying together forever!"

"And you do know that a majority of all marriages end in divorce, right? Part of the reason is because of spouses running off with other people!" Never had I seen Takahiro's face turn red in anger.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You're saying shit like that now? Last time I checked, _you're_ the one who proposed to me!" Nor had I ever heard him swear in my life. "Why can't you just trust me? If you love me why don't you trust me?"

"I trust you but just"- He stopped talking and walked away. "I'm going to bed."

"Usagi!"

"I'm going to bed."

"But it's not even five yet!" And their bedroom door was loudly shut as well. I watched as Takahiro rubbed his temples furiously and exhale slowly until he spotted me. "Don't even ask, Misaki. Sometimes his mind… It's so… Just go back to your room. We'll just use the left-overs from yesterday for dinner, so don't make anything."

As much as I wanted to help, I realized it was none of my own business. I had my own problems to deal with and currently it was attempting to properly apologize to Shinobu.

Friday came before I realized it after a night of being indulged in thoughts and listening to a certain couple "make up".

I handed in my assignment to Sensei. He nodded slightly, glancing over the page once and then asked me to come closer.

"Is something wrong with the paper, Kamijou-sensei?"

"No," he said, then lowly, almost in a growl, "But I just wanted to say that you better not open your mouth about Miyagi. Got it?"

"Y-yeah." I had no choice to agree since I valued my own life.

He then sent me back to my seat next to where Sumi was. We both saw Shinobu some rows ahead of us, which I knew was odd considering he usually sat behind us.

"Shinobu," Sumi called, patting a spot next to him, "Come sit with us!"

"That's okay," he declined, "I need to pay attention today." Sumi rolled his eyes.

"My ass," he muttered, "Unless the kid lied to me when he said he was one of the top students of his school."

"He was?" I asked.

"Misaki, I think **you're** the one who needs to sit in front. I thought you talk to Shinobu as well," he said, and then added quickly, "Oh yeah. You two are still fighting, aren't you? Maybe it has something to do with that after all." How he unexpectedly hit the mark gave me a less than pleasant feeling, remembering the incident a couple of days ago.

Class began shortly after that.

Sometime during the lesson, I stared down at Shinobu. He was writing notes diligently and constantly kept his focus on Sensei. Not once did he look back at me.

'_Did he forget me?'_ No, that was nonsense. You can't exactly push memories to the back of your brain so easily. _'Unless he's trying'-_

"ACK!"

Everyone in the room stared at me as the sound escaped my lips and yet another spiral notebook fell with a smack to extended desk. Sumi laughed quietly.

"Takahashi, don't slack. Keep your eyes on me," Sensei grumbled. I flushed with embarrassment. It had been the only time I was actually caught day dreaming in his class.

"S-sorry Sensei…" And class resumed.

When it was over, I stood up and rubbed my face. It was still sore from the impact. And it felt warm too.

"That looks like it hurts, Mr. Economics Major."

"Sh-shut up…"

From above, I noticed Shinobu ready to leave. "Uh, Senpai I'm gonna go. See you!" This time, I was able to corner him successfully.

"There you are, Shinobu! Listen, Shinobu," I started, trying not to be intimidated by his irritated stare, "We need to…uh… talk."

"Maybe later."

"No! I mean…" I took a deep breath. "Usami isn't going to pick me up for another little while. In the meantime how about we… go to a coffee shop?" I expected Shinobu to turn away once again, but it seemed I had hooked him.

"But I thought you hate coffee," he said.

"I do, but I like their pastries." So we went from there on the way to the same coffee shop we hit just days before. And I didn't fail to see the first, yet small smile on his face before we started walking together.

Pound cake for me, strawberry short cake for him. This time I paid for the both of us despite his protests. We chose a table next to the window. I folded my hands.

"Listen, Shinobu I just wanted to say that I'm really sorry for what I said. It was totally unfair that I kept throwing your emotions right back at you even after what you were trying to tell me," I apologized, "I mean, I was caught off guard by the things you kept telling me, but I guess that's because it's just something I'm not used to, I don't know. Believe it or not I'm not a homophobe. I accept my brother for his…decisions-and yes I admit that he's in a relationship with his 'roommate', but the past couple of years my life has totally changed because they're living together. I've never known anyone that was gay until they started dating and for a while I honestly thought that the relationship was forced upon Takahiro, but he truly loves him. I thought you were trying to do same thing and… I'm just not very good with changes in the first place. It takes me a while to adjust."

"I wasn't trying to enforce anything on you," said Shinobu.

"But it was your persistence that kept telling me otherwise. I barely know you other than what I've learned from that night at the reception. And just… Shinobu, you have to understand. I'm sorry, but I just can't be your lover or boyfriend or whatever you call it."

"I understand," he muttered, sinking a little bit in his seat.

"But I can be your friend! I would actually like to know you better, so…" The second smile was a little bigger.

"Okay. I can deal with that. And, Misaki?"

"What?"

"I'm sorry." He pointed to the red half of my face. I didn't understand what he was getting at for another few seconds and we laughed together.

"My house isn't too far from here. How about we walk there?" I offered.

"Isn't Usami-sensei picking you up?"

"I'll just tell him I decided to come home myself when we get home." We finished our cake and threw out the trash.

"Oh, and Shinobu, I have a question."

"What is it?" he asked.

"Who was that guy you were with yesterday?"

"You stalked me?" Shinobu questioned dryly.

"No!" I yelled, "I was _following _you. And it was only because you were avoiding me with that guy!"

"_That guy_ is a friend of mine from Australia. His name is Hunter Keegan. He was visiting Japan for the time being. In fact, he's going to study in Mitsuhashi starting next semester," Shinobu explained.

Back home, as I reached for my key, I noticed a bouquet of flowers sitting at the door. It was finely wrapped with baby romantic roses.

"Is that from your 'girlfriend', Misaki?" he asked, "Eri-chan, right?"

"… We broke up again," I said, "…For good."

"Meanwhile she's actually Usami-sensei's editor."

Ignoring him, I picked up the bouquet and read the tag. Shinobu looked over my shoulder and arched an eyebrow.

"Usami Haruhiko? Is that a relative of Usami-sensei's?"

"I-it should be. At least I think." But the main mystery that boggled my mind was why they were sent to my brother. Something told me it had to do with what they were screaming about yesterday afternoon.

"Anyway, Shinobu, let's go inside. I have creampuffs. There might even be some of that watermelon you brought over." I opened the door and we stepped in. The bouquet of flowers was also carefully disposed of.

The rest of the day went smoothly-especially for hanging out with someone like Shinobu. Neither my brother nor Usami found a rose petal lying around. What they did find however was my face still swollen from being hurled at by Sensei's notebook with a thorough and embarrassing lecture on why to stay focused.

Life for once promised to hit for me a steady pace. The only new additions I had to worry about to it was a to be wedding, a potential stalker of my brother, facing more abuse from Sensei and most of all, a friend that came out of nowhere who mind you, is in love with me. It would be a matter of time before everything would have dissolved into an easy cycle.

**Boy was I wrong about that. **And so Misaki's nineteenth year went…

**A/N:**** Well, that's the end of this act. Thank you again for reading! I'm really going to try and make the updates quicker from this point on.**

**Now, I have a couple of questions I'd like to ask you guys. First of all, ****Junjou Flame****, like ****Junjou Romantica****, is the title name for a series and under that title there are multiple pairings. Secondly, I'm debating whether to put the other pairings I have in mind inside ****Junjou Flame**** or have them as separate fics. What should I do? Do you guys even want me to create acts for other pairings (for example UsamixTakahiro and MiyagixHiroki etc) or should I just solely stick to MisakixShinobu?**


	5. Act 2:1

**A/N:**** Just an important note I forgot to make; Hunter Keegan is NOT an OC. He's the nameless Australian guy from Season 2 episode 8 (or just episode 20). Remember the Engrish scene? Yeah, now you know who he is~**

Junjou Flame

The new semester had begun before I realized it.

I no longer had the demon Kamijou as my professor, but I would still see him at Shinobu's. Yet every so often he'd pull me aside when I'd least expect it while walking in the hallway with my friends and mutter the same few words to me.

"You didn't tell anyone, right?"

And I'd always answer no, which was the truth, but I was afraid of what would happen if I said yes.

Takahiro and Usami were still pulling through together in the meantime. They still had their stressed out moments since that "Haruhiko" guy persisted to send Takahiro numerous gifts. It got so bad that at one point he and Usami had a war between buying my brother glorious mountains of shit he didn't need. At one point I think the closet full of stuffed bears was about to meet its match along with the separate rooms for Usami's other useless toys- like his mini Great Wall of China set.

I would complain about it. My brother would ignore me, claiming that I was overreacting and then say something to Usami once the situation was to get worse. Usami after that would rage about how Takahiro doesn't love him despite the fact that he already has since the night they were engaged. They go back and forth for a while. Words are tossed. Wrists grabbed. Backs against the wall. More angst.

And then the happy couple would make up.

At night.

The cycle wouldn't be complete without me losing hours of sleep, of course.

As for Shinobu, he and I remained friends. It was easier talking to him than I had judged earlier when it came to anything- life, family, video games. I could run my mouth around him like it was nobody's business and he was there to listen.

But the one thing that bothered me was that Shinobu still refused to show much emotion. Maybe it was because I was the only happy-go-lucky kid of the pair laughing at my own lameness and I made myself look even more stupid. Maybe it was because of whatever reason that he still wasn't happy, yet he seemed content with "just being friends".

Or at least, I hoped he was.

And after a day of classes, I was busy doing chores.

A basket of laundry smacked against the floor and I started out by taking the clothes and putting them on the loveseat as I felt it was a simpler task to sort them this way when I did that.

Once I took out everything, I noticed something catch my eye that sat at the bottom of the basket. Curiously, I took a closer look at it.

_**Act 2**_

_**Part 1**_

**All that Glitters isn't Gold**

_Just like that they collided, practically meshed together as one, running their hands through the other's hair frantically as they kissed with greatly hinted desperation until one of them decided to go further than that by drawing a hand from down back to the front._

"_M-Misaki!" he cried out in surprise as the older's boy's hand swiftly ran along and tugged on his swollen shaft. "W-what are you do-doing? We can't do it here"-_

_ "Do what?" Misaki asked innocently as he raised his lips to the boy's, engulfing him in a warm and passionate kiss. "You mean __**that**__?" _

_The boy gasped and nodded in embarrassment under Misaki's touch. He was laid back against the wooden table for support and his legs were spread apart. _

___"I-if you really want it then, I'll g-give it to you," he stammered, lifting up his shirt to reveal a pale and thin physique, "But j-just so you know, it's my f-first time. Be g-gentle, okay?"_

_ "Oh, I don't know. Try saying it with confidence. Make me believe what you're saying," Misaki said seductively._

_Shinobu blushed a furious shade of pink and looked away shyly. "Do I have to have to? It's s-so embarrassing!"_

"_Well, I guess if I'm not needed, I'll just leave you alone," he smirked, gently squeezing and stroking the exposed manhood. _

_ "N-no! Please! Enough of the teasing, just f-fuck me already!"_

_ "Oh, you want me then? I can take care of that," Misaki said, pecking him on the lips once more as he inserted a finger into the boy's entrance, spreading it wide. Shinobu shivered from the sensation._

_ "Ah-ah! I-it hurts, Misaki!" he whined. Misaki kissed his forehead sweetly, probing in another digit inward as another high cry echoed into the nearly empty library._

_ "Don't worry, Shinobu," Misaki whispered, "You'll start to like it soon." And the couple-_

"**USAMI**!" I screeched, trembling so much that the book fell out of my hands. The stupid rabbit came rushing down the hall after hearing me scream.

"What? What is it now?" he asked, annoyed.

"J-ju-what the hell was-whatisthisIdon'teven…" I fell onto the floor, not even feeling the pain in my knees as I did so, trying to ease the violent frustration morphing inside.

"If you're not telling me, then I'm going back to work to finish a manuscript. I don't have time to deal with you," said Usami.

"But you have time to make stuff like this!" I picked up the novel by its corner showing a dreamy cover with two flashy men near in height hovered over each other with a bunch of frilly flowers in the background, adding in obnoxious sparkles that made the intention of this thing more obvious than it had been. What really pissed me off about the cover was that one man was a brunette hunched over a honey blond. I was sure that was anything but a coincidence.

"Oh. You saw it." It wouldn't have been a surprise if I was foaming at the mouth when he spoke of it in such a dismissive way-as if it meant absolutely nothing that his perversions (once again) crossed a major border and were selling like hot cakes.

"YEAH. I SAW IT. WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?"

"Misaki, calm down. You're so loud," Usami growled.

"YOU WROTE A PORNO ABOUT ME AND SHINOBU. HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO CALM DOWN?" Usami was able to keep a straight, almost responsive mocking poker face to my yelling.

"So what? I told you ages ago that I always make sure to write a note that characters in this book are completely fictional." He looked over the page I had read that fell onto the floor. "And the least you could have done was read a little further. You missed the best part."

"That's not the point!" I strained, "It's the fact that you used my name in the first place along with Shinobu's! You're freaking** sick**! My God this is worse than when you wrote about your self-insert with nii-chan!"

"And look at what happened there," Usami mused.

"Don't remind me!" I groaned. Usami laughed and ruffled my hair like I was eight years old again.

"Think of it as a 'peek into the future' if you will," he suggested with a smirk. I sucked in my breath, attempting not to self combust at the vulgar thoughts entering my mind.

"Firstly I am not gay! Secondly, Shinobu and I are just friends. Thirdly, I don't act like whatever character you gave my name to! I'm not the 'semi' or terminology you and Aikawa use nor is Shinobu the 'ukelele'."

"'Seme' and 'uke'," Usami corrected.

"Whatever! It's still really fucking weird. Fourthly, I am **not **gay!" Usami stood in thought for a moment.

"You're right. Maybe I should have switched the roles."

"Are you even listening to me?" I yelled, "I-repeat- am not gay!" Usami yawned like an uninterested and lazy cat.

"Mhm. Keep telling yourself that." I suddenly remembered the rest of the clothes in disorganized piles on the couch and began to fold them. The rabbit observed me as I slowly filled the laundry basket. "At least admit it. You have been spending an awful lot of time with him lately," he noted.

"Uh-huh," I mumbled absent mindedly, folding a large shirt.

It was undeniable that he and I had been hanging together whenever we could. Sometimes we included Sumi along with, starting the day before, Hunter although it was a little awkward being around him since he and Shinobu would speak English back and forth and I wouldn't understand what they were saying. And it made me feel more ashamed that I hadn't done well in English class.

We'd walk around town and eat out. Then we would go back to his place or mine-unless Sumi was with us. Usami still held a grudge against him for whatever stupid reason so he wasn't allowed inside.

"You're getting pretty close to him." That was also true.

I had learned a lot about Shinobu these past few months. I probably knew him even more than Senpai did and could read his thoughts clearer than before we became friends. Shinobu more than likely could say the same to me.

"He seems to have taken a liking to you, if you know what I mean."

The reason why all this started in the first place was because Shinobu flat out said he was in love with me. Sometimes he would still confess his feelings out of nowhere and with no starry eyed look or gentle embrace. Rather it was a serious and dead-pan stare sitting a few feet away from me that freaked me out more than the random confession itself.

"You're… just seeing things," I said, gripping the fabric tightly in my hands, "He's a friend. Just because we talk and stuff doesn't mean it's romance or something like that. It's all in that perverted head of yours-and that BL piece of garbage."

"Oh? What do you call your relationship then? Is it really_ just_ friendship?" asked Usami with a snicker.

"Well fine then. If you don't call it 'friendship', then how about 'bromance'?."

"You can't spell 'bromance' without 'romance."

"Shut up."

He laughed as my cheeks flushed and I squirmed a foot or so away from him, finishing the laundry in a rushed panic as I didn't even care about the sloppiness of the folding.

"At least try to fold the clothes correctly. Concentrate."

"Usami, you don't even know how to fold laundry! And I can't exactly concentrate when you're standing there watching me. It's annoying," I growled.

"What? Am I in your personal bubble or something?" Usami asked innocently, "Maybe it's because you wish I were someone else? Shinobu perhaps? After all, he is a good looking fellow"-

"If you like Shinobu so much, why don't** you** go out with him instead of my brother?" I snapped.

"Touchy, aren't we? Lucky for you, he's not my type," Usami shrugged, "I'm more attracted to sweet-hearted air-heads." As if I already didn't figure out that important bit.

"Yeah, and apparently so is this 'Haruhiko' guy." My mouth closed. It happened so suddenly that I didn't even have time to shut it in the first place. Right then and there I knew I had picked the wrong time to say anything all caused by my annoyance.

Because in an instant, even without looking, I could sense that the man had turned stone-statue expression of a deer in headlights within a second. I was afraid to accidentally move my head towards his direction, curious whether or not his reaction played true in my mind. Never had I been so scared of him throughout all the times I heard his arguments with Takahiro and how grouchy he was in the morning.

"What did you say?" He took slight pauses between each word. The saliva in my mouth grew heavier with each nervous swallow. There was no turning back now. Usami heard it. He knew I had found out a portion of his personal business and bullshitting him at this moment would do no good.

I coughed. "Well…uh… there's this guy that sends presents to Takahiro…"

"Look at me when I'm speaking to you," Usami spoke curtly.

"Right! M-my apologies!" And I looked him right in the eyes-another mistake on my part I realized after feeling emotionally and mentally drained. "Well… of course I throw them out. I also hang up whenever he calls," I said carefully. Usami brought a hand to his mouth and covered it, trembling a little.

"That bastard…" he mumbled.

"Um… Usami," I spoke with more caution, "May I ask who this guy is? It's just that he's obviously creeping after Takahiro, who mind you is my brother, and I remember he is an Usami as well"-

"So what? There are other Usamis out there! It's not exactly a rare surname," he interrupted. Then I was starting to get more pissed off than earlier. I knew exactly what was going on, so why did he bother on trying to hide whatever secret there was from me?

"Yeah but he also has a lot of money too. I can tell because the both of you carelessly spend it."

"There are a lot of people that spend what they can't afford. Your argument is invalid." Of course I wouldn't give in to him.

"Is he your brother? Or some kind of a relative? How about that?"

"Stop asking questions already. Kids like you shouldn't even be involved in an adult's situation." Usami took the porno book with him as he stormed back to his office. "And by the way, I have **no** brother!"

Of course I would have shouted after him that I never mentioned anything about a brother, but it was best to leave him alone. My mouth had been blabbering all day and the last thing the man needed to do was have an ulcer or take in enough nicotine to smoke out the stress as I could tell he was trying to whenever I would happen to pass by his office continuing to sweep and clean while smelling cigarettes in the air.

I don't recall seeing him for the rest of the day after that either. He didn't even bother to eat dinner with Takahiro and me, who had to open Usami's door and send the food to him. My brother did question me if anything happened, but I denied it right away. It was an obvious lie, but I didn't care. I felt like putting off making amends at the moment.

"You know, Misaki," Takahiro said to me, chop sticks toying with a lone strip of meat sitting on his dish, "Usami is a very insecure person."

"Could have fooled me," I shrugged, already taking my plate to the sink. "Are you going to finish that?"

"No, take it, Misaki. I'm not hungry anymore." I took his dish, emptied the sole content into the garbage and began to scrub it clean. "But there's something I have to tell you. Promise me that you're not going to say a word about this to Usagi. I figured you should know this because it was quite obvious and I'm sure you've had questions."

I placed the clean plate in the sink, and then faced towards Takahiro. "Sure, what is it?"

"Usagi does have a brother. Well, technically they're half brothers. His name is Haruhiko Usami."

"I knew that part," I admitted.

"Was it really that easy to tell?"

"The man leaves his name in presents and phone calls. It doesn't sound like he's going to stop either for a while," I said. Takahiro sighed and for the first time, I could see visible dark circles under his eyes.

"I'm not sure how much longer I can last. Between the battle of 'who can buy the most strawberries' or whatever with work and keeping Usagi under control is draining my energy majorly," he confessed.

"So why don't you just get a restraining order?"

"It's not that simple, Misaki," said Takahiro, "Usagi and I are going to be married soon. That means he's going to be part of the family and just… it doesn't feel right to shut him out."

"Well, it's either your marriage or dealing with a guy you don't even know well." Takahiro left it that. The chances of him speaking to me about this again seemed to be a one in a lifetime deal at the moment.

I had no classes the next day, but I was still outside of Mistushashi. It became sort of a habit previous from last semester that even if Shinobu or I didn't have classes and one of us did, we would wait until our classes are finished and walk each other home.

Not to say that I wouldn't have done the same for Senpai, of course, but him being banned under the watch of Usami made things more difficult. While Takahiro was against Usami's "insecurities" when it came to Sumi, the whole thing with Usami and his brother had to make him change tactics. I was no longer allowed near Sumi in exchange of there being less of a reason for Usami to have a breakdown. It's not like I could lie easily when alone around Senpai if Takahiro called me and wanted to know where I was. I'm a terrible liar. Proof? Attempting to get Shinobu off my back by telling him Aikawa was my girlfriend (and I'm not sure if she realized that either).

So there I was, waiting. Shuffling footsteps approached me and I turned.

Then I slumped a little in disappointment. But he smiled at me, making that sunny blond hair of his even brighter than it was the day before.

"[Hey] Misaki!" he greeted me. I blushed, already frustrated and tried to think of how to greet him in English.

"Hunter, hi!" He looked at me, astonished as if me remembering his name was a miracle and draws closer.

"[Are you waiting for Shinobu?]"

All I did was nod my head slowly. He smiled.

"[Do you know when he'll be here?]"

I shook my head indifferently, and then he slapped his hand on my back a few times.

"[Something wrong, mate? You look like a man itching to see his lover!]" Hunter then started to laugh and I had no choice but to laugh along with him, somehow able to stay in game of pretending to understand him since it seemed he didn't know I couldn't speak English.

"Misaki! Hunter!" Shinobu called from the entrance, shoulder bag swinging with him as he ran over to us. "Sorry I took so long. The professor held us back for a bit." He glanced at Hunter. "[Did your class go well today?]"

"[Yes! It was really interesting! I'm already liking it here better than back at home]," he says excitedly. It really makes me wish I knew what the hell they were talking about.

"[That's good. I'm glad you're getting along well]" Hunter struck a pose, straightening up and pointed to his chest proudly.

"[And why wouldn't I? Sure my Japanese isn't that up to par yet, but just leave it to me! I'll be fine]" They began to walk and all I could do was follow them.

"[So where are we going today?]" I could hear the question mark at the end of Shinobu's sentence, and he looked at me too. A string of curses ran through my mind. So I shrugged my shoulders.

"[Well we went to my place yesterday]," Shinobu said, thoughtfully, "[And you just moved in. So I'm sure your dorm's a mess right now.]" Hunter put a hand behind his head.

"[Yeah, what can I say? I can't recall the last time I cleaned a window so well that I could see my face in it clear as day.]" Shinobu smirked devilishly.

"[And it probably broke right?]" Hunter burst out laughing whole-heartedly.

"[Man I forgot you can be such a wise ass.]" He began to go his own way. "[Anyway I better get going.]" Shinobu put both hands on his hips.

"[Eh? You're leaving us already?]"

"[Mom's being a tight ass. She wants me to have everything 'all nice and organized' and take a picture of my room when it's all done so she can see it.] Bye [now]! [Good to see you], Misaki!"

I sighed in relief at an angle where Shinobu couldn't see as he shouted after him. "[Just stuff it all in your closet already! You've got enough room! That's what you were gonna do anyways!]" Hunter just chuckled again and waved Shinobu away, who was also giggling a little. To be honest it fooled me for a second that he might just be normal.

"You alright, Misaki?" Shinobu asked suddenly. I blinked.

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Just that you hardly say anything around him. It's a little strange, that's all. Thankfully he doesn't notice a thing." Which he truly doesn't, but I still was hoping it wouldn't be long before I could understand him.

"Sorry. It's not him." It was sort of a lie, but there was something else on my mind. "I know we went there yesterday, but is it okay to go back to your apartment again? Home's not really where I wanna be right now."

Shinobu stared at me with concern. "Is it more about that Haruhiko guy again?" I nodded.

"Uh-huh. I'll tell you more about it later."

What we saw on the door when Shinobu and I got back to his apartment was a sign on the door.

_Shinobu-chin,_

_Hiroki and I are going to be in a meeting. We won't be home until after 8, so I'm afraid you'll have to eat alone._

_Miyagi_

_P.S. Please do me a favor and heat yourself some ramen. Don't let my nightmares of you burning down this place come true._

"Oh well," Shinobu muttered, opening the door with his key. "I think there's some cabbage left over…"

"Ah, Shinobu how about I make dinner tonight?" I asked quickly, trying to prevent my eyes from totally bugging out. "It's been a while since I cooked."

"It's my home. You're the guest," he insisted.

"Right…" Meanwhile, an angel in Heaven must have been rolling on the floor laughing. "What was I thinking?"

We spent the next half hour or so watching _The Kan_ on TV. Shinobu was sitting boredly on the couch and I next to him, eyes glued to the screen as if it were going to grow legs and run away.

"Why do you even like this stuff?" Shinobu questioned, "It's so… flashy and hyperactive. I'm surprised you don't need glasses."

"Hey, come on. _The Kan_ is awesome! Don't diss it! Just because you're into boring things it doesn't mean this isn't amazing!" I said in defense. Shinobu shook his head and hid his eagerness for the credits to roll.

"I don't like 'boring things'," Shinobu spoke monotone.

"Oh yeah? Prove it!"

"I like _you_."

Sucking in my breath, I tried to hide my face from Shinobu who didn't even seem to notice.

It was weird. Every time he said that I felt more uncomfortable. I mean, who wouldn't be? It was uncalled for and creepy and-just what the hell is that? Yet I wasn't repulsed like before we became friends. I wasn't attracted either. In a sense, it sounded more like I was "accepting" of it or whatever. Because what was I supposed to do? Usami and his porno vs. my actual brain had two totally different ideas of this friendship or bromance.

…Unless I didn't want to admit having not thought about it. Then I shook my head furiously, trying to erase that image.

He was staring at me then, his eyes clear of any emotion until nearing closer to me. Our hands brushed against each other, but I don't think he meant to do that. The momentary sensation of his skin startled me.

"Uh…Shinobu?"

"Tell me what happened," he demanded, "Seeing you this way makes me feel... upset." I tilted my head to the side until I figured out what he was referring to.

"Oh, the Haruhiko thing? It turns out he's Usami's brother-half brother to be exact."

"Usami told you that himself?"

"Ha, no," I sighed, "Takahiro did… After Usami and I got into a fight over it because I opened my big mouth. And just… things between us-everyone in the house, I think- have been terrible lately. Not that Usami and I ever got on the right foot in the first place, but you get what I mean."

"It's not like they're gonna break up," said Shinobu.

"No, of course not. I haven't seen Takahiro this crazy about someone. That Manami chick he was planning on proposing to doesn't even compare to Usami. It's just really hectic right now. My brother has never been this stressed and it's really worrying me. I'm not sure what's gonna happen," I said.

His arms wrapped around me into a light embrace. I flinched at first, mainly because he pressed his cheek against my messy hair. Hesitantly I did the same with his upper chest. We stayed like this for a while.

**I couldn't recall the last time I felt truly tranquil around someone.** If I allowed myself to, there was a good chance I could've been lulled to sleep so suddenly. Yet a month ago this never would have even happened. And I wasn't sure when this happened, but my hands were itching to grab his and then-

"I should make dinner." My senses came together and I instantly jumped away from him.

"…Yeah. You should."

Shinobu got up from the couch and I began to follow him.

"Do you at least want any help?" I offered.

"No thanks. Just sit back and relax," Shinobu dismissed me, dragging out one of the refrigerator drawers with a full selection of cabbage to choose from.

There I was, laying on the couch wondering what exactly just happened. I think the angel laughing their ass off from before had another trick up a sleeve if not a camera.

**A/N:**** Ugh terribly late chapter is terribly late! I'm so sorry! At least this is the longest one I've written.**

**Well, now that exams are finally over along with my terrible writer's block, I can actually get down to writing more. Don't worry; this story isn't going down without a fight! And to make up for all the time lost, I'm going to try updating every Monday. …Okay that probably isn't going to work, but bear with me because I will try!**


	6. Act 2:2

Junjou Flame

_**Act 2**_

**Part 2**

**If only Walls were Made of Mirrors**

Not long after Shinobu and I ate together, Takahiro came to pick me up since it turned out there was no left-overs in the fridge and _someone_ needed to make dinner. Who better to cook than the hazard-free Takahashi Misaki, of course?

I didn't mind so much since for me, my stomach was tossing and turning hopefully caused by an unsettling meal of cabbage (not to mention convincing Shinobu to take cooking classes, let alone that salt doesn't make everything have flavor). Secondly, I was needed at home for something else.

"I'm sorry I had to take you from your friend, Misaki," Takahiro said to me during the car ride home, "But I really needed you to come home!" I shrugged.

"It's no problem. We weren't doing anything. Besides, I don't like the idea of you guys using a stove."

Takahiro bit on his bottom lip. "Actually, I told half of the truth. While Usagi and I do need to eat dinner, you can make all that later when he comes home. For now, there's something else we need to do."

All I saw in the apartment after arriving home was a pit of darkness. The feeling in my stomach tightened as an image of a skeptical Usami giving me his cold blooded stares ran through my head momentarily. And then the lights were turned on.

Rather than seeing the rabbit, I saw a ceiling high pile of assorted "trash" ranging from vases to fine champagne. Strawberry and chocolate containers were included along with glasses cases and watch boxes. Then I understood.

"So…you cleaned out the closet? That's the surprise?" I asked.

Takahiro grinned. "It's not the only surprise! I had…a total epiphany earlier!"

'_An epiphany?'_ I thought, _'Coming from him it can't be good.'_ "Really? What is it?" I questioned hesitantly. Takahiro was bubbling with extreme excitement.

"Okay, so I thought about it and since we have all this stuff we're never gonna use, why don't we make a giant Suzuki sculpture out of all this? It will put everything to good use!"

I opened my mouth, but no words came out. In place there was a good period of silence. _'Yep. I was right.'_

"You make the cutest faces when you're shocked!" Takahiro beamed, "Believe me, this is going to be so much fun!"

"Uh… nii-chan, why don't we just sell everything and get a huge teddy bear? Wouldn't that be easier?"

"I know. I thought about that too _(I sighed in relief)_. Usagi will get mad, though because he got me some of these things and I really don't wanna hear him complain right now. Besides, we have a week! Time can't be wasted! All we really need to do is set up the boxes, wrap it over and paint it!" he explained.

"But where are we gonna put this thing where Usami can't see it?"

Takahiro tapped his chin. "Well, would you mind if we put it in your room? Once we pain it, however, you'll have to sleep on the couch."

"Okay, fine. But how are we going to move this thing _out_ of my room once we're finished?"

"…Would you mind keeping it in there?"

"Nii-chan!"

"It'll only be until that new room comes in! I think I told you we're expanding, right? Your room will be extended in the process, so we are going to have to knock down some walls. Through there, we'll push Suzuki into the new room," Takahiro planned.

It amazed me how well he had thought this out. Not that he wasn't intelligent, of course but my brother did dream too big sometimes. "What about the ribbon, wrapping and paint?"

"I didn't wanna have to do this, but it looks I'll need to take money out of what Usagi has given me over the past ten years." He glanced at me. "Please, Misaki? You wanted to help out, right? This is how! And I can't think of anything else that would make Usagi happy. Plus… I feel like we haven't really spent any time together since I started living with Usagi." Well shit. How was I supposed to say no to that?

"Alright," I finally gave in, "I'll do it. Just… why are we doing this again?"

"Remember? Usagi's getting the Kikukawa award next week. I wanted to do something for him so that's when this idea came around."

And that day I learned that it was amazing what you could do with boxes. It was difficult at first to keep the 6 foot monster at bay. Having his Takahiro kept busy, noticing more garbage than usual and us getting covered in paint was trouble enough. Once or twice my brother was ready to open his mouth, but I quickly stopped him with an on the spot excuse. Had Usami not bought that suspicious lie or stayed home for three or so nights, we never would have finished this project.

I wish I could say more about it, but the process alone was draining on my end when it came to school. Between that, doing my work and getting sleep, I barely thought about much when working on the huge bear. It was like somehow Takahiro and I managed to get all the boxes to fit in just the right spot to resemble a decent looking Suzuki. And I'm not sure how much Takahiro had to spend on this project. He probably doesn't want to remember.

All I can recall clearly is finishing it, stepping back and thinking what a damn good job we did together and that Usami was going to love his present. And that I can't imagine what idea Takahiro would come up with for Usami's birthday (if he decided to do something since this took a toll on even more of his energy as well).

So yeah, I apologize for the lack of detail. Of course keep in mind I'm not here to write about creating a giant bear sculpture. This is something more personal and interesting, but that's besides point.

In which I guess if I actually had more time to spare my thoughts, I would have noticed something was very odd about Shinobu before what happened five days later.

For one, he was speaking more English than Japanese mainly because Hunter was with usually with us all smiling and stuff. It kind of irritated me.

Secondly, after Hunter left, Sumi and I tried to get Shinobu to come with us to the café. So here I was, trying to be nice on the day after I was finally done with that chore of creating a huge bear and what did he do?

With a slight snarl and annoyed glance at us, he said something like, "Hmph. I can't. I've gotta get back home." Not once did Shinobu turn back and wave us off. Sumi and I just stood there and watched.

"Well, that's alright. I haven't hung out with you in a while, Misaki. Wanna go together?" he suggested.

I was waiting for him to hesitantly look at us or something; a sign that maybe someone didn't piss him off. And that it wasn't me. After some time I had been tired of seeing Shinobu fade into the distance. "Yeah, let's get out of here."

It was when Sumi got a coffee while I didn't even bother to get myself anything sweet that he leaned on the table, supporting his head with one hand boredly while staring at me.

"What's wrong, Misaki? You didn't want to go here? We could go somewhere else."

"N-no I'm fine! Just a little…tired I guess," I said nervously.

"Tired of _me_?"

I gasped. "Senpai! You're my friend! Why would I think that way?"

"Why would you think that way indeed?" Senpai muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing," was his quick reply. He stirred his coffee in circles absentmindedly. "Don't you think Shinobu has been…off lately?"

"Today? Well yeah. I mean, what the hell was that about? He didn't even say goodbye…"

"I meant the entire week."

I blinked a few times, hunching over in my seat a little. "…Honestly I wasn't really paying attention.

"Seems so. I mean, the way Shinobu just seemed to only wanna click with Hunter is strange. He's a nice guy and all, but Hunter is around us all the time."

"Yeah. Tell me about it," I mumbled.

"It makes me think he's smitten to him." I stared at him long and hard for a good few minutes. "... It means Shinobu is romantically interested in"-

"I know what that means!" I yelled. There were probably a good few people staring at us, but I shrugged that possibility off. Sumi raised his hands in surrender.

"Whoa, calm down! It was just an idea!"

"Oh…" I hadn't even realized I was standing up. "Right."

"You jealous or something?" Sumi teased.

"As if! Why would I be?" It felt a little foreign on my tongue to say. But it was true, right? Sure the thought of Shinobu and Hunter spooning was unsettling, but that was a normal reaction. Okay it was plain disturbing. Besides, he's gay. I'm not. "They could do…whatever it is homosexuals like for all I'd care!"

From what I knew, Shinobu liked a certain someone named Misaki Takahashi- not Hunter Keegan so there was no way the image in my mind would happen, right? There was just no way it would. It's not Shinobu never made any promises so I didn't need his loyalty. **What did I need from him then?**

"I just remembered," Sumi spoke, dragging me from my thoughts, "You can't be alone around me at the moment. Last I recall things are still shaky on the home front right?"

"Shit I forgot! Wait, where are you going? Don't change the subject on me!"

"Actually, I need to get going anyway. I've got homework to do. We'll catch up some other time." With that Sumi slung a bag over his shoulder and left. "Just do me a favor and don't be a stranger now, okay?"

If anyone would ever ask me to choose which feeling made me feel the most disgusting, it would be a tie between being pissed off and guilty- especially when I really had no reason to be. Because that's something which not only spoils an entire day, but it makes everything easier to get you down; rather cooking a meal on one of those rotating sticks faster for an unknown prey in the middle of a forest. You don't know when it's going to happen, but you're sure it will.

At least when I came home there was some good news. Usami hadn't found the giant teddy bear, but he found out about the Kikukawa Award party.

Hearing a door slam right when I walked in and a deep masculine cry of something like, "No! You can't make me go!" was enough of a hint that things hadn't gone well as planned.

Aikawa was chasing him down the hall, but arrived a little too late- banging on the door in frustration. "Usami-san, you're going to disappoint everyone! At least think of the publishing company that'll be ruined thanks to your sorry ass!"

"My apologies, Aikawa," Takahiro sighed, "Shall I go talk with him?"

"Yes please! It'll be a disaster if the honored guest isn't at his own party!"

Takahiro ran over to Usami's office door and saluted her. "I'll try my best."

Aikawa walked back into the living room and ran a hand through her flaming red hair nervously, cell phone in ready in the other to dial a number. "Ugh, I don't even wanna call in! The company's gonna have my head…"

"Uh, Aikawa-san?"

"Misaki! I didn't even see you!" Aikawa greeted me.

"That's alright. Looks like I came home at a bad time," I laughed nervously.

"You can say that again. Curse that rabbit and his irrationality," Aikawa grumbled and then smiled, "Anyway, come sit down with me!" She patted the couch cushion near her. At first I hesitated, suspecting that it would be something about when I called her my "girlfriend" but I ended up sitting down. "So, Misaki are you excited for your trip to Teito Hotel? It's really fancy and their sweets are divine! I went there a few times for business myself."

"I wasn't aware that I was going," I said, puzzled.

"Well now you are-or at least act like it!" she grinned.

"What? But why? You guys don't need me there or anything, right?" I asked.

"Au contraire, you are needed. Because if you don't go, Sensei won't budge!

"Usami doesn't even like me, though. What about my brother? Does he wanna go?"

"No. He said he'll feel bad about 'indulging' or whatever and for dragging Usami to the event," Aikawa explained dully and then with enthusiasm, "But if you want to go I'm sure your brother will do whatever it takes!"

"And you already told him I said yes, as assumed?"

Aikawa winked. "It's all part of the plan!" I groaned aloud, leaning back against the couch.

"Fine, if I have to, I'll do it. I'm not a fan about forcing Usami to go, but whatever. If you go down, you'll pull me there with you it seems."

"Don't say it like that, Misaki! Think of it as a way of saying that you mess this up and you'll never- and I repeat **never- **see the light of day again!" The more I think about it, the more I realize how questionable it was for her to be all cheery while saying creepy stuff like that.

As planned, Usami was convinced to attend as the guest of honor. All that was left to do now was pack my clothes which thankfully had been done earlier this week. Then after that I needed to check the train schedule for the next day since I decided to get my things after school while Takahiro and Usami went to the hotel by car. I wasn't exactly looking forward to it, but my decision (rather Aikawa's decision) made everything calm for the time being. Or at least back at home.

Over on campus, however it seemed I went unnoticed after waiting for Shinobu to finish his class when I was done with mine. At first I felt a little burst of joy since said Australian wasn't in sight but once I spotted Shinobu heading out, I kind of wished he was there just so I could be seen. I mean, I got the cold shoulder for no reason! What was that about?

"Shinobu! Wait up!" I called after him. He continued walking and I grabbed his arm. "Hey, what are you running off for?"

"Let me go!" Shinobu struggled from my grip.

"What's your problem? Tell me or I'll keep pulling you!" I shouted.

"Let me go or I swear I'll scream rape!"

"Just tell me what I did wrong! Why are you acting like this?"

"I don't have to tell you anything! Just let me go already!" I let go of his arm which he rubbed sorely. "Why do you even care so much? You haven't even been around to answer my calls or anything-not even talk during our walks. I've needed to talk to you and just… what happened? Why are you avoiding me?"

"I'm sorry. I never got a chance to explain because I've been like, mentally drained the entire week. Yesterday I was available but you were pissed off and went home without giving me the time of day." Shinobu un-tensed his shoulders and exhaled.

"You mean it?"

"Yeah. I'm not trying to avoid you or anything. I've got a big mouth but I'm not gonna avoid you again. That stuff was in the past."

"Okay… Well, what about today then? Can you come over?" I was ready to open my mouth and say yes, but then I remembered that the ceremony was tomorrow and I needed to head out tonight. And then Aikawa's threat rang through my mind.

"I can't. Not tonight." With a flash of anger, Shinobu stormed on ahead. "But wait! I can do it next week!"

"Go to Hell! Don't even talk to me! Obviously you're too busy to even bother!"

"Fine then!" I found myself screaming back, "Be a bitch! I tried to help!"

Which I did. It was a failed attempt but I couldn't understand why I was being treated this way. Sure I hadn't been around much all week but sacrificing my time was something I had to do. I should've explained it in the first place, yes. What pissed me off however was the fact that Shinobu hadn't even given me a moment to explain what I had been doing.

To my surprise, Aikawa was back at home when I got there. She merely gave me a thumbs up, obviously happy that things went her way as Usami was already near the hotel. Of course, though she came by to make sure he didn't turn back at the last minute.

"I can't thank you enough, Misaki! I'm sorry for making you the scape goat but you understand, right?"

"Yeah it's fine," I said, wheeling out my suitcase, "No biggie, really." _'Except now Shinobu is even more pissed off at me.'_

"Oh and Misaki, can I ask you a question?"

"Hm?"

Aikawa clasped her hands together. She bit down on her bottom lip, attempting to resist giving me a curvy red lipped smile. "How is that boyfriend of yours?"

"I don't have a boyfriend!"

Aikawa gasped. "The honey blonde kid that's always here all the time, right? He's not?"

"I'm afraid so." _'Why the hell does everyone think I'm going out with him?'_

Pouting, Aikawa unzipped her purse and held something close to her chest I wanted to forget existed. "B-but you're in the Junai series as the latest addition! It was getting so good too!"

"That was just Usami being an ass. Besides, I'm nothing like how I was portrayed in that **thing**."

"You're right!" Aikawa exclaimed and then more seriously, "I should have told Sensei to make you the uke…"

"Why doesn't anyone ever listen to me! This is why I can't… ugh never mind."

"Can't what?" she asked me calmly.

I shook my head. "It's nothing."

"Come on, Misaki. You can tell me. I won't laugh or anything."

Unconsciously my body molded into somewhat of a ball. "It's just… confusing. I get asked about stuff to do with Shinobu by nii-chan, Usami, Senpai and you. And I brush it all off because to me it's stupid. But then I see Shinobu talking with this guy and I get upset. Right now I don't even know where Shinobu and I stand since he's mad at me for whatever reason. I'll admit it; he does like me. He told me so himself and I cuddled with him last week and it felt so… nice and just I'm not sure about what's going on anymore." I expected a fit of excited giggles from Aikawa, but she remained silent so I continued. "And he also mentions something about destiny and how we're meant to be. It's like I'm compelled to like him and I'm not sure if I want to." I laughed nervously to make noise in the midst of silence. "Sorry. I'm probably not even making much sense right now."

"It's alright, Misaki. I understand," Aikawa said with a warm smile. "Also you can't just force yourself into this. It wouldn't be good for the both of you."

"I know but just there's something there. I'm not sure what it is, but I can feel something around him and I just can't explain it. It's like there's some… attraction that draws me close to Shinobu and if something happens I end up running after him. He's fun to talk to. I can tell him anything. Senpai and I are close like that too, but this is something else. And then at times he can be deadpan and so easy to annoy that I get irritated. Other moments he can be... nice. I don't know. It's like something out of a shoujo manga," I explained. It suddenly came to me how heated my face was, "Not to mention I've never been with a girl before. I never had one as a friend either. I always thought a girl would just come naturally by my side someday and then I see what happened with my brother..."

"But you know homosexuality isn't something to be ashamed of, right? You are what you are," she said.

"Of course- not that I'm not a homo or anything. At least I don't think I am… Bisexual maybe?"

Aikawa shrugged. "Let me ask you this; if Shinobu was a girl would it be any different?"

"A girl?"

"Yes, he-rather she- would be just like Shinobu except feminine."

"Shinobu is Shinobu. I don't think gender would change that. It certainly would be a lot easier if he was a girl but I guess he's alright as a male too."

"Then you can at least get past the gender aspect. I know it's difficult but you have to try. I'm not sure what kind of argument you guys had either but I think you need to make it up to him along with your mind. Either be with him because you **want** to or don't," Aikawa advised. She then checked the time on her phone and rushed out the door. "Oh no! I'm gonna be late! See you at the hotel, Misaki!"

While dragging my luggage to the train station, I was lost in thought.

I liked Aikawa. She was pretty, smart and female. But if anything I could say she's most like a sister to me. Male Aikawa would be suitable as a second brother.

Senpai was fun to be around and he had that mysterious character persona girls could possibly swoon over when meeting him a few times. But he didn't swoon me.

And as for Usami- well okay that would **never **happen. Or at least it would in a universe where Takahiro got married to that Manami chick and left Usami heartbroken during the time I was getting tutored by him. And then he'd fall for me afterwards because I was able to put him back together or whatever.

Ha. As if.

When finally arriving at the train station, I was waiting in line to buy my tickets. All the machines were taken at the moment, giving me enough time to take out my money.

I noticed while standing there that the people taking up the other few machines had left already. This man dressed professionally in a business suit had been staring at the map for a while now. It was crowded enough as it was, so why was he just standing there? Unless…

"Excuse me," I spoke hesitantly, "I could check how much your stop is if you want". He glanced at me and mumbled a slight, "Huh", presenting a more serious yet younger face than I had imagined from behind. "Sorry. I thought maybe you couldn't see the map."

"No I can see it. I'm trying to get to Teito Hotel." At least he sounded somewhat friendly.

"Well you'll want to get off at Hibiya Station, so that's 160 yen."

"I see." The man seemed fine from there.

…Until he just stood there frozen again, obviously confused. _'Has this guy never been on a train?' _"Um, I'm going to Teito hotel too. How about we go part of the way together?"

It wasn't until we got on the train that I had spoken another word to him. "So… do you ride trains often?"

"No, my driver always comes and picks me up."

My first thought was that he was filthy rich. The second asked whether Usami, another privileged guy had even bothered to take a train himself. Meanwhile he was riding in his fancy sports car to Teito Hotel.

Speaking of the rabbit, I found a poster of his new book. It was something called The Moon in the Box to be awarded the Kikukawa prize. I'll admit I did feel happy for him. Sure I never read his work, but he practically labored over it. "He's pretty amazing, isn't he? Winning that prize has been a huge promotion for him."

"He's a dull writer," he blurted. I cocked an eyebrow.

"Oh… Have you read his books?"

"They're not even worth reading."

As much as I don't like Usami, the man didn't deserve the right to say shit about him like that. I mean, he didn't even read his books! Why do I meet people that act so irrationally? Is there some kind of a magnet or "kick me" sign on my back?

The rest of the train ride was awkward. We really had nothing to talk about. Far as I'd been concerned there was a lack of interest from both our ends. At least we had made it to the hotel without any more disruptions other than getting a little lost. Apparently there had been a section added to it not long ago.

We were making our way to the front desk for directions. Lo and behold there came Usami fresh out of the elevator.

"Ah, there you are! Is nii-chan back in the room?"

"Yeah," he answered, "He's busy taking a good look at the room like a small child. It's actually quite adorable"-

"Yes, yes I get it! What room are we in?"

"We?" asked Usami in an annoyed tone, "Your room is 305. Takahiro and I are in 304."

I sighed. _'Yep. Typical. Should have known.'_

Once I was about to get on the elevator, I looked back and noticed that Usami's look had gone completely cold again. And it was more frightening than the one he gave me last week. "Uh… Usami-san?"

"Why are you two together?"

'_What's he talking about?_' I looked to my left. The man was still there. "Well, we kind of met as we were getting on the train. And we were heading to the same place, so… Is he a friend of yours?"

"Not even close," Usami grumbled, gritting his teeth.

The elevator doors opened again and this time my brother stepped off.

"Misaki! I was waiting for you! Come on you have to check this room out it's so"- He stopped mid sentence with his mouth nearly hanging. "H-Haruhiko? What are you doing here?"

I was nearly ready to scream.

**A/N:**** And Misaki is finally coming to terms with his feelings and inner gayness! Yay!**

**Wow. Late chapter is late. At least I got something done. I'll try again to update in a week, though. Also, my apologies for using lines from the anime but I felt it was necessary to do it here since the train ride is canon minus a few elements I decided not to put in. Anyways, enjoy~**


	7. Act 2:3

**A/N:**** So I'm sure some of you might be thinking "Hey, wasn't Isaka in this scene? Where the hell is he?" Well I'm not sure exactly if I'm going to put him in anything or not. All I know is he isn't going to be in ****Junjou Flame**** itself. However, it is possible he can be in the sequels for it I have in mind. It depends on how useful I can make him because I really don't like when you have characters that appear just like, one time. **

**This is the same for Nowaki, actually in which he isn't going to appear in Junjou Flame. The problem is, though the point of ****Junjou Flame**** is to create ****rare**** pairings. Nowaki will be in one of the sequels as part of a couple I have in mind and as a minor character in another, but for Isaka I'm not sure who to put him with because there's not much else out there. I mean, why ship him with Asahina when first of all, they're canon and second this is a fic featuring experimentation in couplings?**

**Also my apologies for using dialogue from the anime once again. It's only for scenes that are the same in canon and here. **

Junjou Flame

_**Act 2**_

**Part 3**

At this point in life I realized a majority of why this stuff happens to me is because I happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Take for example having the pleasure of meeting Usami Haruhiko, the man who allegedly was stalking my older brother for whatever creepy reasons he had due to something I call "Usa-mones" (a joke which nobody else but me understands).

Now, I met him because we were in the train station at the same time. Coincidence.

We rode together on the same train. Also a coincidence.

Both of us were heading to Teito hotel. Coincidence once again.

Combine all that with meeting Usami and Takahiro there with said man causing shit to go down back at home and you've got yourself a situation that is just too unbelievable. Because you know, I could have happily found Usami on my own, rode alone or even just missed finding Haruhiko standing in front of the map in a lost daze.

So what comes next while I'm not even ready to absorb these mind-fucking coincidences?

"Takahiro, I didn't expect to see you here. You haven't left my brother yet? We could share a room back at my place."

"For the last time Haruhiko I'm not going anywhere with you," Takahiro said.

"You heard him," Usami growled, "Leave now or I will call security. Just because you're my older brother it doesn't mean I'm going to let you get away with this. It's bad enough you followed us here. To think you used Misaki like that is an all time low for you!"

"U-um I… He didn't…" My voice immediately died.

"Don't accuse me of such things. I don't even know who this kid is."

"Hey! Don't call me 'kid'!" I hissed.

"I am here for a meeting. That's all. Never would have thought I'd run into _you_ here," Haruhiko replied.

"Thank you for the flowers you were kind enough to send the other day," Usami spat, more than likely referring to the amount of gifts Takahiro had been receiving on his end.

"Flowers? Oh, my secretary must have sent them." Suddenly this didn't seem like this argument was going to be centered around my brother anymore-probably something more sensitive. I'm sure Usami felt the danger of the mood as well because he nodded to me, urging me with his eyes to move into the elevator before things got even shakier.

"Misaki, let's go."

"When are you going to come back home?" Haruhiko blurted.

Usami turned his upper body back to face him. "I'm not going back. I believe I've made that clear. I left that house on my own will. I won't ask anything from there now. You can do as you like."

"Give me a break!" Haruhiko shouted, finally breaking his attempt at maintaining a professional demeanor, "What about me! I've got to clean up your mess, fill in the gap you left. You don't give a shit about any of that, do you?"

"If you don't want to do it, then _don't_. I never forced you to do anything." Usami did have a point there. Haruhiko, if my assumptions served me correct, was rich as Usami so really if anything he could afford a change in life on his own accord. So why take it out on Usami?

"It's so easy to talk when you've bailed out and ran away," Haruhiko seethed.

"I suppose so."

"Hey now, cut it out, both of you!" Takahiro barked, grabbing my hand to keep me close to him.

"And what did you run off to be? A novelist?"

"Haruhiko!"

"What an enviable profession. It must be a wonderful life, to turn away from reality and occupy all your time with daydreams and fantasies," Haruhiko rambled, "You spew page after page, have them publish your trifling books, and on top that, you wallow in your self-complacency. It must be quite pleasant indeed!"

"Shut the hell up!" I screeched, finally stepping forward.

Yeah, how noble of me I know walking into something that was none of my business wasn't the best idea. It wasn't even about my brother at the moment! This was centered around these two guys doing nothing but pissing each other off along with myself!

Well, that whole thing about being in the wrong place at the wrong time I think sometimes is partly something that can be controlled. This here is self explanatory.

"What the hell is your problem? You just said on the train that you'd never read any of his books! Well if you haven't read them, quit mouthing off about them!" Everyone was speechless. Takahiro wasn't trying to hold me back. "You don't have the slightest clue how hard Usami works to write his books! Sometimes he doesn't sleep for a week! And you've never seen how terrible his face looks then, have you! _**(Which was true. Dear Lord that is one of the most frightening things I have ever encountered in my life)**_."

"Misaki," Usami finally said, "I think it's time to head upstairs." The elevator doors opened.

"Wait I'm not finished yet!" I cried as Usami dragged me inside. Pointing my index finger firmly at him, I said, "Don't act like you know everything based off your own stupid opinions. You've got a problem with him? How about you read a single one of his books before you open your mouth?" I took a deep breath. "_IDIOT_."

The doors closed and it was just the three of us in the elevator standing there. When we got up to our floor I rolled my suitcase out and to my room, not wanting to say anything else at this point.

"Listen, Misaki," Usami said sharply to me, drawing my attention, "Under no circumstances are you to interfere with this. It's my fight, so stay out." And that was all he said to me, entering inside his room with my brother. At that point I had opened the door, rolled in the suitcase and didn't even bother putting away whatever necessities were in there. Instead I plopped onto the bed belly down, flushing with anger.

'_Stupid Usami… I stuck up for him and I get that kind of response...! Why is he such an asshole to me despite everything?'_ I rolled over and sighed. _'He's no different from that Haruhiko guy, that's for sure.'_

On impulse I pulled out my phone and dialed Shinobu's number, knowing that he would want to hear about what just happened, and was surprised to hear his voicemail. Then I remembered he'd still been mad at me for whatever I did.

I wasn't sure how long I ended up sleeping, but it was noticeably dark outside. I didn't feel better, nor was I worse until looking at my phone. Shinobu hadn't called back. I mumbled curses, angry at Shinobu for being so irritable and at myself since I didn't understand why.

…

Neither Usami or my brother mentioned a time for dinner, so I wasn't exactly shocked to knock on the door and have no answer when in the first place there were no lights on seen from outside. Only thing to do left now was to get myself something to eat. Alone.

"What are you doing here?" I turned around abruptly and saw the last person I had wanted to see carrying a wrapped box.

"Ah-ah Usami…Haruhiko-san!" I addressed him, backing away, "I was just looking for my brother. He's not in his room so…"

"Very well then," he said, handing me the box. Haruhiko turned away, not even bothering to look back at me. "You can give that to your brother."

When Haruhiko left, I unwrapped the box and found inside it a small case of German chocolates. My stomach groaned just by looking at the pictures of it on the cover, but I found resistance to eating them by throwing out the box. It was a waste of chocolate, sure and I felt bad since it was more than likely expensive. Opening it I realized in a sense would have been admitting defeat as it would mean he won me over-or even my brother.

…

Usami and Takahiro weren't to be found in the restaurant downstairs. I figured they wanted to dine somewhere else that would give them a better chance of avoiding Haruhiko so I called my brother.

"Mi-Misaki…? What is it?" Takahiro's words were slurring on the other line. I thought at first there was a lousy connection.

"Where are you? I tried knocking on your door but there was nobody there. You're not at the restaurant either!"

"_Ahhh… Hah!_ Usagi stop that!" Takahiro whined in a higher octave, "I'm on the ph-phone he'll-_ahhh_!"

"Nii-chan?"

"I'm s-sorry, Misaki you'll h-have to… _Ngh_!" And he hung up on me. I pursed my lips, failing to register in my mind what had been going on at the moment. _'The food better be charged back to the room or I'm screwed…'_

I ended up waiting on line next to a guy who seemed to be swinging between his middle aged and elderly years. He only noticed me when I smiled at him politely when taking my seat.

"How long have you been waiting here?" I asked him.

"I'd say about 10 minutes or so. It's not so terrible. I'm not sure how much longer I can wait, though," he laughed, then sighed, "Ah, it's not easy to get a one-seater here. I could have easily gotten a double if my son came down here with me."

"Why didn't he? I mean-you can answer that if you want to."

He shrugged. "It's fine, really. The boy's being difficult. He's not hungry, or so he says. I think that's just an excuse to get away from me for a little while. Teenagers. What can you do about them?"

"Well, he probably just wants his space. It's not anything personal, I assume. Boys at that age can be complicated," I said, trying to sympathize with him.

"I suppose. Hopefully he'll come around." He glanced at me. "You sound like a parent yourself. You're quite young looking too."

"Wh-what? No way! I'm nineteen and I wouldn't"-

"I'm only kidding!" the man beamed, "However you do sound quite mature. My son could learn a thing or two from you."

…

I never asked for the man's name. I'd been called up and he bid me farewell.

And yet something told me that he looked oddly familiar. I couldn't tell what it was about him that did. He had short gray hair, glasses and a suit on. The man wasn't virtually different from any other well dressed guy I happened to pass by on the street. So why…?

Bumping into someone reminded me that I had been on my way back to the room.

"Sorry!" I apologized on reflex. He bowed his head and ran around me.

For a split second I caught a glimpse of his eyes. I was ready to grab his arm, but he had already turned a corner. I shook my head.

'_No… what the hell am I thinking? That can't be Shinobu!'_

…

I managed to fall asleep again after spending some time staring at the ceiling with a half-blank mind. My body felt groggy from all those hours of resting, yet I felt the urge to drift off again.

"I've told you time after time and I'll say it again; **leave me alone**!" That sounded like Takahiro for a second.

'_I need to snap out of it…'_

"You do realize you're making a mistake, right?" The other voice sounded kind of like a deep and reserved baritone.

'_It's Haruhiko! Wait, what the hell are they doing arguing in the hallway? Usami could hear them! Or is he already with them?'_

"The only mistake I made was trying hard to get along with you! You're going to be my brother-in-law and that's all I will ever be."

I forced myself out of bed, landing on the floor loud enough to cut off what had been going on outside short.

"What was that?"

"I'm not sure. But I assume we're done here," Takahiro hissed. The door slammed harshly against its hinge.

"We'll continue this later," Haruhiko said probably loud enough for him to hear (since I could).

I wasn't sure how long I had been asleep to miss whatever conversation they had. It was 11 in the morning. Already I wanted to drift off back to sleep again if dramatic stuff like this was bound to occur all day.

I decided right away that it was best Usami didn't know about what happened this morning. It amazed how well the man could sleep through what I was able to hear outside I realized when I came in to visit a nerve-wrecked Takahiro and Usami sleeping soundly on the bed even at 11 AM.

"Man, he's still out cold," I commented.

"Yeah, Usagi didn't get much sleep at all this week. Hopefully he gets up soon… I don't wanna have to wake him." Takahiro visibly shuddered at the thought, knowing very well what consequences might have occurred despite being Usami's fiancé. He then opened the closet and pulled out a wire hanger with a long cover attached to it. "Oh and before I forget, this is yours."

I un-zippered the cover and frowned. "A suit? I'm going to the ceremony?"

"Of course! I can't let you just stay up in your room the entire time! That wouldn't be fair," said Takahiro.

"I didn't even know I was on the guest list."

"You're not, but Usami can pull a few strings," Takahiro replied nonchalantly. I sighed, carrying the suit by its hanger.

"Hey, nii-chan," I said, "What happened?"

My brother took one look at me and shook his head. "It was nothing. Haruhiko came up to me this morning. Besides, didn't Usagi tell you not to get involved?"

"You think I care about what he says? Takahiro, you're my brother and if there's something going on with you it's my problem too!" He still wouldn't say anything. "I only heard the ending, but there's still no point in keeping it from me. So just spill it already. Tell me what happened."

At first he seemed to resist, but then he finally said, "I lost my cool. That's what happened. He went up to me and asked whether I got his gift. I didn't know what he was talking about, but apparently he gave you something I was supposed to get." I opened my mouth to say something, but Takahiro held his hand up. "If you did and threw it away, that's alright. I don't care about that. What bothers me is that he then said, 'So you've got your brother conspiring against me too? That just shows how appreciated I am. At least I wouldn't treat you like a privileged toy.'"

"The hell is he talking about? Usami doesn't treat you that way!"

"I know but then he goes on about how many people Usagi's slept with in the past as one night stands-which I knew about. What really hit me though is the fact that he mentioned Usagi has not only never come out to the media but that our engagement was never announced and just… it really hurt. So I lost it and started yelling." He looked up at me fearfully. "I don't wanna doubt him. We're getting married. I love him so much. We trust each other. The thoughts of it going wrong scares me."

From there he kind of started to quiver a little and tear up, so I put an arm around him. "Takahiro it's just some stupid scare tactic. You know none of its true. Yeah, he's a perverted and flamboyant, but you know what? The guy waited ten years for you. I highly doubt he's going to leave anytime soon."

"You're right," Takahiro said, wiping his eyes, "I'm just a nervous wreck I guess, getting upset over nothing."

"I didn't say that. Just you need to get your head together. That's all."

He held me into a tight embrace and sniffled. "Thank you, Misaki. For everything."

"Listen, I'm going to put the suit away and then shower. I'll probably get something to eat in about an hour. Feel free to join me if you can." Takahiro nodded to me as I pulled away from his hug and took the suit with me out of the door.

I momentarily admired the suit. The dress shirt underneath was a bright pink and the suit itself was a smoky gray. There was a blue tie its pocket I discovered. I then remembered that I'd worn this before, but when exactly?

'…The wedding! I wore it to Miyagi's wedding!'

And it all flashed in my mind for a few seconds. That was the night I met Shinobu.

'_Shinobu! Did he call back?'_ I eagerly checked the phone. _'Nothing.'_ With a grunt, I tossed the phone onto the bed. _**'What am I expecting? All I'm doing is getting myself crazy over this.'**_

From the corner of my eye I noticed a tiny sheet of paper lying on the floor. I guessed that the paper slipped inside when I walked in. Written on it was vaguely familiar handwriting.

_This isn't over._

It seemed there was something more troublesome on my plate.

…

"Ladies and gentlemen, some words from Usami-sensei on winning the award."

Takahiro is next to me trying to applaud with a glass of wine in his hand. For once he seemed at ease compared to earlier and I can't help but feel better around him as well.

"Doesn't he look handsome, Misaki," he gushed to me as Usami walked on stage.

I snorted. "Yes, professional indeed."

The spotlight is cast onto Usami and he gives this bright, sparkling smile. "I'm Usami Akihiko." I'm sure my jaw wasn't the only one that dropped. Takahiro couldn't keep a straight face. He was already swooning like a few other girls behind me. "I would like to thank all of you for making time in your busy schedules to come all this way, and I'm incredibly grateful for this amazing celebration that you've all made possible. This novel, for which I was honored to receive the Kikukawa Award, is somewhat unique compared to the other books I've written, I think."

It seems celebrities have two different kinds of faces: the ones they have in the magazine and on stage.

The magazine is usually a personal highlight that becomes a phenomenon in the gossip industry. Whether it's certain that this is the real person may be unknown.

However, it seems more realistic than the stage face. This is the mother of all poker faces or at least one meant to please as everyone while they're applauding.

And I just kind of think about it for a moment. He's up there making his speech and I wonder if for one second it's crossed anyone's mind here that he is not only a homosexual but engaged to an average man. Has it occurred to anyone that he's a pervert who not only writes award winning novels but BL material under a different penname? Or what about his obsession for average family possessions and activities? What about the fact that he can barely do anything other than eat, sleep, have sex and write? The paparazzi would have a field day with all that!

"Thank you very much."

Usami left the stage only to be surrounded by a crowd of women eagerly waiting for him to reach out like a grand king in his prime. Takahiro shifted a little nervously.

"Should I…?"

"Go get him," I said to him with a small smile.

"But what about you, Misaki?" he asked.

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom. Don't mind me."

I left the ceremony and headed for the restroom just a floor above. A restroom was back down there, but I wanted to be away from the party if not for a little while. In truth I just wanted to have an excuse to leave as I didn't need to use the facilities. Besides, it wasn't really my place to be. I wasn't even invited.

After entering the restroom, I looked in the mirror. I adjusted my hair and tie, making sure both were proper. Taking a deep breath I then ran my hands under the faucet with cold water. I flinched at first, feeling the sensation. Something about this screamed of nostalgia.

And something choked in the background right then as if trying to hold itself back. The water shut off automatically once I removed my hands, listening intently to the sound that came around a couple of times.

Carefully I walked about, trying to find a pair of feet. Thankfully it seemed only one stall was occupied. I knocked on the door. "Hey, is there something wrong?"

"G-get out of here! Don't bother me!" he screeched.

I bit down on my lip. "I can't just leave you alone like this."

"Y-yeah you can. Everyone else has…"

My heart dropped. "Now why would you say that?" I asked him.

"I-I don't know… My Dad's threatening to pull me out of school and make me go to a different one if I don't change my major. He also mentioned something about changing my l-living arrangements. If all that happens I'll n-never get to see him again!" he explained, trying to keep his stuttering under control.

"Your Dad?"

"No," he said. His voice shook more. "This guy I'm in l-love with! H-he's the one who inspired m-me to d-do what I want! Th-the sad part is I-I don't know what I'll d-do without him and he doesn't even l-like me that way nor will he e-ever! H-he probably wouldn't care if I was g-gone!" The sobbing grew unstable as he rambled on.

"Does he know how you feel?" I questioned.

"Y-yes. I don't think he s-still understands though," he answered.

I blushed, thinking back to my situation. My initial reactions put me to shame, but that was because this was something I hadn't seen coming by a long shot. Now though I was confused.

Aikawa said so herself that I had the ability to overlook gender if I put my mind to it because Shinobu as a female would be the same male. He would still be the grumpy, arrogant, odd mannered, failure of a cook, persistent, talkative, fun, kind, gentle, caring, guy I knew. But what was holding me back?

"Maybe you just need to give him time," I advised, "I mean; it could take ages for that to happen. Someone close to me didn't realize he was…gay until falling for his best friend ten years after they met."

"So w-what am I supposed to do? W-wait that long?"

"Keep him at the back of your mind until you find someone new. That would be for the best. But don't close off yourself to him. Be open. Me, I wonder if I've lost my chance. I know I've blown it quite a few times. Now he's mad at me and I don't know what to do because he refuses to answer the phone when I call him. I've been chasing after him like a maniac and haven't been getting anywhere," I confessed, exhaling when I finished.

"It…sounds like you feel the same way," he observed, his voice oddly losing its stutter while still having the ring of someone about to start crying again.

Did I like Shinobu? I could survive having his arms around me, let alone knowing that he loved me and despite the flaws in his personality there was an indescribable attraction. But did that make it all worth it? Is that what I wanted?

**What did I want?**

"I just… need to talk with him again," I finally stated, "I want to tell him how sorry I am for not being around lately and not explaining why. I want to tell him how worried I was because he never called me back. I want to say how much I m-missed him because we've been really c-close. I-I want to say how much this has been driving me crazy…" Hot tears began to streak my cheeks. "A-and I just wish I knew how to f-figure it all out! Th-this is all just so irrational a-and I'm making a mess of myself."

For a while there was no reply. But then I heard a low mutter something along the lines of, "You are an idiot".

With a click, the stall door opened and out came Shinobu from the stall red-eyed-his arms open wide to hug me. I stepped back at first, surprised by his sudden appearance and slowly doomed to be pinned back with the bathroom counter.

My eyes widened, still wet with tears forming. "Wh-what? You're here too?"

He responded by slowly inching his face closer to mine. Since I didn't show signs of protest though I shivered in anticipation for what was going to happen next, he gently pressed his mouth against mine, moist lips asking dry ones to part. I allowed him to and at once there was a full impact of what had just happened. I might have gasped into his open mouth.

His eyes were closed and mine fluttered shut after a while. I didn't try to put any force back. All I did was stand there and shudder a little even when he pulled away after what seemed like ages. In reality, the kiss was quite brief. If my face wasn't pink before, it surely would have been a bright red by now.

"Shin…obu?"

"You stopped." I blinked, unsure of what he met until realizing that the tears were no longer flowing. I bowed my head in embarrassment.

Shinobu then buried his face into my shoulder. He had been shivering himself. I wrapped an arm around him unconsciously kept a hand on his head, letting the silk strands of honey hair graze my finger tips.

"So… I guess that means you heard everything I said, right?" I questioned with a nervous laugh. He nodded against my suit. "I really did mean it, though. I'm sorry."

"I forgive you. I'm sorry for how I acted too," Shinobu held onto me a tighter. "Just stay like this for me. That's all I want right now."

**A/N:**** WELL FINALLY. Geez. Anyways, hope you enjoyed this fluffy scene.**

**Sorry about missing the update. I would have had this done but I went to my grandma's and forgot to put the chapter on my USB drive. I would have rewrote it but that would have been pointless since have the chapter was written. Instead however I started writing ****Junjou Passion**** while there so I didn't waste that much time. See you next week (hopefully)!**


	8. Act 2:4

**A/N: Sorry this is late! I was gonna have the chapter finished last week but my file wasn't working. It came up in code and I couldn't get back what I'd written beforehand.**

**Also, a couple of announcements before the chapter will begin:**

**For one I need a beta. I'm tired of looking over what I wrote and fretting because I missed something extremely minor or a sentence was written in an awkward manner after publishing the chapter. While I can't pay or sell anything to anyone who wants to help me out, I can do things like write, draw or even beta (I'm better at revising other people's things than my own). **

**My other announcement is that I've decided and the other sequels to Junjou Flame will be posted separately. At first I decided against it because I felt that the other couples wouldn't be given much attention, but I realized that by posting them under one story it would make me feel more forced into updating each storyline based on "whose turn it is" and I hate being forced to write. **

**The release of the sequels themselves I can't say. It's a matter of timing (partly because they may contain spoilers to other storylines). I can say though that Junjou Passion will come first, but not right now. You'll see why~ **

Junjou Flame

_**Act 2**_

**Part 4**

Moments later, we were up on the balcony of Shinobu's hotel room, taking in the cool and crisp breeze while standing against the safety rail. We were talking about what had been going on for the past week up until now as the wind blew gently against our bodies. I told my story about the giant bear filling my room with the scent of wet paint (which he surprisingly believed) and Shinobu was ready to tell his series of twists.

"Wait a minute; your sister is getting remarried?" I asked.

Shinobu nodded gravely. "Yeah, she is. The wedding date hasn't been made yet. Today we were just meeting her fiancé and his family," he explained.

"So you were leaving for Teito hotel anyway yesterday! Why did you get mad at me then since you were going to be busy?"

"I thought you were avoiding me again," he stated, and then added sheepishly, "Plus I thought telling Father I had plans would at least post pone coming here until the next day."

"You could have at least asked Senpai or Hunter if you could stay over by them," I pointed out.

"I tried, but Sumi said he had to go somewhere and Hunter was having 'webcam night' with his family."

"A-what-night?"

"I don't know what they call it. It's something they do once a week to catch up on whatever it is they'll talk about. They did the same thing back when I was rooming with him at our other school. Anyway, that doesn't matter anymore," said Shinobu.

"So… this means you're not mad at me, right?"

"Nah, I'm over that now. Besides, you're the best thing that's happened to me all day."

My cheeks were tinted bright red as I momentarily thought back to an hour before.

His lips on mine, soft and ripe, the warmth of-

"Misaki?"

"Uh, you didn't finish telling me your story!" I blurted, "I mean… Why were you so upset earlier back in the stall? Okay yeah, you were partially upset over me and stuff, but you mentioned something about your dad."

Shinobu straightened up his back. "Oh, that."

"Ah, I'm sorry!" I apologized quickly, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to!"

He lifted his hand and ruffled my hair lightly in oddly soothing motions. "No need to get all flustered over it. Don't worry."

My cheeks were burning more than they did before. "I'm not flustered…"

"On with the story, I was having a breakdown. Overreacting might be a better word for that, but anyway Father was threatening to send me either with Risako once she gets married or," he paused and looked up at me tentatively, "…Back to Australia if I didn't change my major." Coincidentally enough, the breeze died down.

"W-what?" I gasped, moving away from his hand, "He's that bent on putting you through Law school? He can't do that!"

"Actually, he can and he would. Father is the dean, remember?"

My face fell. "Uh… No?"

Shinobu furrowed his eyebrows. "Dean Takatsuki Chokichi? You seriously didn't make a connection?"

"Ugh, shut up! I didn't know, alright? Geez, I liked you better miserable," I joked.

The doorknob twisted right then. All I could see from the balcony was the silhouette of a man at first, but as he moved closer I could make out who it was.

'_Gray hair, glasses, that face… Oh my God!'_ I thought, feeling a cold sweat coming on.

"There you are, Shinobu. I thought I'd find you here." He glanced at me and smiled. "And I see you have a friend."

"D-Dean Takatsuki!" I stuttered, "G-glad to see you…again!"

The dean shifted his glasses and brightened. "Ah yes, I thought I recognized you! You're the same boy I talked to last night while waiting for dinner. How polite of you to call me dean as well! I assume Shinobu mentioned that bit about me?"

"Actually, I'm a student at Mitsuhashi. My name is Takahashi Misaki. I'm sorry for not introducing myself earlier," I said.

"Is that so? Well, Takahashi-kun it was pleasant to see you again, but I must speak with my son alone. So, if you will please…"

He paused to stare at me and I look towards Shinobu for guidance.

"Go on. I'll text you later on," Shinobu told me.

"…Right," I said with a bow, "It was good to see you again, Takatsuki-san."

With that I power walked out of the room and back to where the ceremony took place, wondering if I had made the right decision on choosing not to butt in their situation.

…

Aikawa was the first person I found when I returned to the party. She ran over with a face stricken with uncertainty and relief at the same time.

"Misaki-kun!" she greeted me, nearby at a loss of breath, "Thank goodness! I was wondering whether you disappeared for good or not!"

"I know, I'm sorry! I happened to bump into someone so we talked for… a while. Have you seen my brother?"

Aikawa shook her head gravely. "No, I was about to ask you the same thing actually. He and Sensei walked off somewhere together and I have no idea where they are. Neither of them will answer their cell phones either! I'm getting worried…"

"I'm sure they're alright, Aikawa-san. They couldn't have gone too far," I said assuringly.

"I hope you're right. If anything, I trust your brother is more street smart than Sensei is."

I wanted to say something, but realized it would've been worse to mention that Takahiro probably had the same amount of sense as Usami-san. "So… uh… Is the party over?"

She nodded. "We disbanded it about ten minutes ago because Sensei didn't come back. The worst part is, there's no way Sensei could've ran off on his own. He was practically cornered by some of the other special guests…"

"I'll try my best to get through to them," I promised, "In the meantime l'll look back in their room first." I hurried to the elevator, barely hearing Aikawa shout one last thing back to me.

"Alright-just let me know if you find out anything!"

…

I was starting to get a little antsy myself after a while. Nobody had gotten in touch with me. I left Takahiro a few messages in his voicemail and text inbox. I waited for about twenty minutes before doing the same with Usami-san. At least I knew Shinobu was going to contact me when he could. As for nii-chan and Usami, I would have expected them to leave me some sort of notice that they were going to disappear for the next few hours.

The hotel room phone began to rang after what seemed to be the millionth time I flipped open my cell. I practically jumped towards the phone and answered it.

"Hello?"

"_Where are they?"_

And then I wanted to hang up on impulse, but something inside me said not to. _'Well duh. What was I thinking? They didn't have to call my room.'_ I cleared my throat and took a deep breath, restraining myself from growling at the man on the other line. "I'm not sure what you're talking about, Haruhiko-san."

"_Our brothers are not in their room nor back at the ceremony."_

"Sorry to say, but I've been trying to get a hold of them myself. I don't know where they are either." I was telling the truth though- not that I would've told him where Takahiro was in the first place.

There was a brief pause on the other line. _"Somehow I don't believe that."_

I instantly felt my head throb with annoyance and anger. "Who am I, my brother's keeper? 'Cause you haven't exactly been keeping track of yours either!" I hissed.

"_Tell me where they are,"_ Haruhiko insisted.

"I don't know! I already told you that."

"_Listen, Takahashi-kun, I have no time to play these games with you"-_

"No, you listen to me!" I screeched, "I don't know who the hell you think you are, but if you're 'such a busy man', then why even bother to call me or pine after my brother? Why waste your time on this guy who obviously doesn't have any intentions of being swooned by you-if that was even possible in the first place- and is happy with your brother? Why do you have to butt in all of a sudden? You know nothing about my brother. I bet you don't know what his favorite color is! So what makes you think you have a chance in hell barging in this way? All you're doing is stressing out Takahiro-whom you 'love' so dearly- and pissing me off! And I've just about had enough of your bullshit!" I took deep breaths and secretly wondered if anyone was going to rap their knuckles on my door for being loud at this time of night.

"_I-I…"_ He huffed once. _"And you're any better? Getting involved in something like this?"_

"Yeah, well, the difference between you is that I actually try to help my brother. You're just trying to ruin his life because he's happy and you aren't," I said.

"_Brat, don't spew the first thing that comes out of your mouth. It could get you in trouble,"_ he growled. **And at this point I no longer cared. I was beyond the point of snapping.**

"Honestly, I don't give a shit if I get in trouble or not. This is technically my fight whether you like it or not because I actually care about my brother!"

"_Enough! You don't understand what I've had to go through. Do you know what it feels like to be a hamster on a wheel? You're running and aging at the same time, but you're going nowhere. You're stuck in the same place under a damn cage…"_

It was odd. He sounded like he had emotions-like he was human capable of having feelings, but not knowing how to act on them.

"And I don't think you realize it either, but you've not gotten anywhere. Has going after my brother really done anything for you?" I asked.

"_No, not right now, but"-_

"It never will, so you have to stop."

He sighed. _"I just don't get it. How is someone like my brother able to feel… 'happy'?"_

"I don't know. Maybe it's because he actually tried to be his own person. You should try doing the same thing."

He hung up on me after that, leaving me hanging.

…

I fell asleep after some time. The sun was out when I opened my eyes once nearly jumping off bed from something vibrating in my pocket.

Sluggishly, I took out my cell. It was a text message from Shinobu. **"Sorry I didn't call. Are you up?"**

"**Ya, i am,"** I replied.

A few seconds later he said, **"I'm leaving the hotel in an hour. Come outside."**

"**Y?"** I asked.

"**Just to say goodbye. Don't know if I'll see you the rest of the day or not."**

"**Ok. I'll c u there."** I exited out of my inbox and checked for any voicemail messages. There was still nothing.

I took a shower and put on a new outfit in a total of ten minutes. I habitually checked my phone. Shinobu had sent me something else. **"Put on channel four when you can! You have to see this!"**

Obediently, I turned on the television.

**There was a busty female reporter talking with the famous author himself.**

"_**Usami-sensei, I must say I am surprised!" **_**she said with a slight gasp.**

"_**I'm sure anyone looking into this right now is,"**_** he laughed.**

My eyes widened. _'Wait… Don't tell me.'_

"**But in all seriousness, what made you decide to come out to the world about your…sexuality?" She seemed to have a tough time getting that last word out.**

"_**Well, I decided I was tired of hiding. Why live a life pretending? I've won the Naomori award and as of today, the Kikukawa award. I'll still continue to write books and I trust my fans will still read them despite me being a proud homosexual,"**_** he explained. Usami then gingerly looked to his right and shifted a little more towards it. **_**"Besides, it wouldn't be fair to keep our love a secret."**_

**The camera turned to Takahiro and I felt like everything stopped for a moment-or maybe that was just my heart. They didn't block his face or have a shadow overcast his body. He was right there being his average self clear as day, blushing madly while squeezing Usami's hand tighter.**

"_**Right, of course!"**_** the reporter grinned, **_**"Your fiancé. That's so sweet… How are you feeling right now, Takahashi-san?"**_

"_**I'm feeling well. Shocked to have been brought here, yes, but nonetheless, relieved. It's like a great weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Of course, not that Usagi-I mean Akihiko- hasn't felt such pressure either. But I'm really glad. We're getting married and I couldn't be happier!"**_** he answered brightly.**

I turned off the television, took my room key with me and ran to the next room.

"Nii-chan! Nii-chan!" I hollered, "I saw it! I saw! Is that where you were? Why didn't you"-

The door opened. Standing at the entrance was the rabbit himself, glowering at me. The bags under his eyes seemed to have dug themselves several inches when cast upon me. "You better have had a good reason to wake me."

I found myself at a loss for words. "I… uh… Sorry! I'll come back later!" The last thing I needed to do was feel the wrath of Lord Usami.

…

Shinobu was waiting outside with his bags already stuffed in the car. "Misaki," he called to me a bit tentatively.

"Hey. You're all packed up?"

"Yeah, Father's packed up as well. He went back inside for breakfast with Mother. They both got up later than I did. I already ate."

"Ah, I see." I had wondered where Dean Takatsuki was. "So, uh… Is everything alright? I didn't hear anything, but, you know, it doesn't hurt to check."

"For now, it seems we're on fair terms. I still get to stay at Mitsuhashi while staying with Miyagi. I have to minor in Law, though."

"Really? That's great!" I beamed. The expression on Shinobu's face didn't change. My smile began to fade. "At least… I think it is."

"He also mentioned something about a program in Australia that isn't offered in Japan. I can get a dual degree in Law and Literature there if I wanted."

**And suddenly, everything just crumbled apart-like the world was going to end**.

"So you mean… You can't be serious! You're going back to Australia?"

"I don't know. We've read on it together. It is a really good program for me. We'd get what we both want," he replied.

**Crumbling… crumbling… It was all crumbling…**

"Oh." I lowered my head. "Then… If that's what you want, go."

"Well, I don't have to. At least, I have time to make up my mind."

"I don't see why you should be held back," I said.

"Then give me a reason." He moved closer to me until his head was about five inches away from mine.

I swiveled back a little. "What… why should I have to give you a reason? If you wanna go, it wouldn't be right for me to stop you!"

"You're not stopping me." Shinobu grabbed my wrist and stared at me seriously. His voice and the look in his eyes softened and I was sure my face was overheating at that point. "Misaki, do you know why I came back to Australia?" I slowly shook my head in response. "Well, first off, I missed Japan and wanted to be back. The other reason was because I wanted to see you again. I wanted to find you."

"I don't really know what to say to that," I muttered.

"Just say that you'll go out with me!" Shinobu choked out, "I came back for you and I don't plan on leaving because you're here." He pulled me closer. "Please, Misaki."

I took a moment to think it over.

Not long ago, Shinobu asked me this. Well, rather he told me to "take responsibility". Was this something similar? I had to take responsibility for Shinobu coming back to Japan. If I didn't exist or we never spoke that night of the party, would we have been close as we were now? **It wasn't what I wanted**. I didn't want control over someone's actions.

But maybe this wasn't responsibility or being selfish. People depended on each other often, right? If the feeling is mutual, are they selfish? Are lovers selfish while being responsible for each other? There was commitment. **Could I handle that?** I could barely handle school work.

I didn't have to talk to Shinobu the night of Miyagi's wedding. I also didn't need to try being his friend or calm him down last night, but I did. There was something inside me that wouldn't leave him alone and it came out last night during that kiss.

That kiss-it was so foreign and I could still taste it. The embrace was enough to make me red head to toe and I liked it. That was obvious enough.

So why hesitate? If this was what I wanted, why not go for it? Then again, what if this wasn't what I wanted or it didn't work out?

Then again, I probably would've missed out by not trying something new and curious.

A creak of the door dragged me out of my thoughts. "Shinobu?" called the Dean from the front of the hotel, "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, everything's in the car," Shinobu called. He looked back at me again. "So…?"

"I'll go out with you."

…

"You know, Takahiro I forgot to mention before we left the house that there's been a distinct smell," Usami said once stepping in the house.

"A smell?" asked Takahiro.

"It reminds me of wet paint."

"Oh, does it now?" he said, trying hard not to grin. Usami gave him an odd look and then glanced at me.

"Uh… Actually, Usami-san, I have to show you something."

The man grunted and for a second I could've sworn he was reaching for a cigarette pack. We walked together towards my room. If only I had a camera to take a picture of the priceless look on the rabbit's face.

"What…Wh-what is this?"

Takahiro beamed proudly and rested one hand against the paper Mache giant Suzuki bear. "It's a little something Misaki and I put together as a gift for your award."

"Incredible," Usami gasped. He was kind of like a child at a playground for the first time, examining the object from every angle. "I have absolutely nothing to say to this." For the first time, he dragged us both into a tight hug. "Thank you both so much. Although, I have to ask-how did you make all this?"

Takahiro rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Well, I don't know if you've noticed, but the other closet has been cleared…"

…

A week later, things had begun to go back to normal. Shinobu and I were on (more than) speaking terms and oddly enough, nii-chan hadn't received anymore presents from Haruhiko.

Now, though reporters had been on our footsteps demanding to speak with everyone in the household and family, making it impossible momentarily to start adding on a new room just yet so I was stuck with giant Suzuki. A few times already Aikawa had threatened them with her wrath.

At the same time, Sumi hadn't been around. He said he was sick and wanted no visitors.

Oh, and Usami had started ruffling my hair more. It was kind of annoying, but at least we weren't arguing that much anymore. I think it meant he was starting to like me.

And I made another remarkable discovery while waiting outside for Shinobu to finish class.

"Oi, Misaki-kun!"

I didn't recognize the voice at first, but I turned around anyway, prepared for a shock. "Hunter, hey."

"Shinobu isn't out of class yet? What's keepin' 'im?"

"I don't know. I've got nothing on my phone from him," I said.

"Neither do I."

We were silent for a while until it hit me immediately. I nearly jumped back ecstatically. "Y-you speak Japanese!"

Hunter chuckled. "Of course I do, mate! Where've you been?" I stared at him with disbelief and he laughed harder. "I'm joking. Well, half that is. I've been learning Japanese for some years now. I just haven't said any because it's a little rusty and I didn't want to embarrass myself. I kind of wanted to wait until I was more settled into school stuff. Plus, dumb of me but I figured you all spoke English since last I checked, it's a required course. My bad."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

Hunter had a dumbfounded look on his face. "What?

"N-nothing. Anyway, did Senpai come out today?"

"I'm afraid not. Keiichi-kun's still sick," said Hunter, "I think this is becoming quite serious."

"Well, let's hope not."

"No matter! I shall visit him anyway."

"I thought he said not to do that because it's contagious or something," I reminded him.

"Not like the lad will have the energy to keep me from coming in there," Hunter grinned, "In fact I'll leave now."

"You sure? You don't wanna meet back at my place as usual?" I offered.

"Nah, I'll give you two a break. I'm sure you're all tired of me, heh!" he laughed. He then leaned towards my ear and whispered, "Besides, I figure I should give you guys some time alone."

I blushed furiously. "Excuse me?"

"Come on, mate! It's not that hard to figure out."

"You mean he told you?"

Hunter flashed me yet another cheesy grin. "Nope! I just wanted to hear you say it. I'll admit it, I knew the boy liked you but I didn't realize you two hit it off! Man, now I gotta kick his arse for not telling me anything sooner." He wrapped an arm around me. "So tell me; is he a good kisser? Awesome in bed? Who tops?"

'_Geez, and you wonder why he won't tell you,'_ I thought, and then said, "Why do you wanna know all that?"

Hunter raised his hands. "Whoa! You don't need to get all defensive! I'm just teasin' ya, no worries! I don't want your man. 'Sides, I've got somebody to look out for myself."He moved away and began to walk near the student parking lot. "Anyway, I better get going. See ya later!"

I shyly waved back and jumped a little when I felt someone bump into me. "Shinobu?"

"Where's Hunter off to?" he asked.

I felt a slight pang of jealousy at not being greeted first. "He's going to see how Senpai's doing."

"Oh." He tapped my hand with his. "So I guess it's just the two of us then. What do you wanna do?"

Hesitantly, I slipped my hand in Shinobu's, not even pressing my digits against his flesh. "Can we go to your place again? It's still a little crazy by mine."

"Of course." He noticed me whipping my head in several directions and raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong, Misaki? Not comfortable with PDA? Afraid that someone's going to see us?"

My face flushed. "I…uh…"

Shinobu leaned on me and neared my lips towards his. "What'll happen if I do something like this, hm?"

"Stop, stop! I'll hold your hand! Geez," I mumbled.

Shinobu laughed lightly and squeezed my hand tighter. "You're so cute when you're flustered~"

**A/N: And that's it for the second act! Hopefully this time I'll update faster. **

**Also, I don't really know what the programs in Australia and Japan are for college nor Shinobu's father's real name. Just bear with it for the sake of the story.**

**See you next time and thank you so much to everyone who's been reviewing, favoriting, alerting and reading! You guys give me motivation to continue this thing.**


	9. Act 3:1

**A/N: Oh college applications, how I despise thee. I'm sorry everyone. Thankfully that's all over with, so I can lay low for a while. Ah well, on with the fic! **

**Also, just a couple of things I should mention:**

**For one, Junjou Passion is going to be up very shortly. Now you're going to see the beginning of Takahiro and Akihiko's story!**

**Second, again, I'm sorry about using dialogue from the anime. I think I might have used too much from it this time, but then again I needed it since the scenes mostly matched (minus some smart ass remarks from Shinobu). Believe me; I'd rather use my own material.**

**Thirdly, I'd like to introduce to you the lovely Taoreta, my beta. Thanks to her, my future fics and chapters will be cleansed like new born babies~**

**Oh, and go read her stuff- it's awesome.**

Junjou Flame

It was summertime now. Shinobu and I had been dating for a few months or so. I guess. Time seemed to have flown by so fast that we were already past my birthday.

Honestly, I wasn't sure what to call it. We never called each other "boyfriends," but we were more than just friends. We'd hardly ever held hands in public and I'd never go so far as to kiss him myself. We weren't that physical in private either. There was a little bit of cuddling here and there and maybe a kiss goodbye, but nothing more. We never even went out on dates. Sure we'd get something to eat together or watch a movie, but together with our friends.

Now don't get me wrong—I wasn't ashamed of going out with Shinobu or anything like that. There wasn't much to keep a secret about our relationship, mind you, because somehow everyone knew we were together. I'd try to deny it, since I was so shy when it came to this sort of thing, but they wouldn't believe me. After a while I just ignored them whenever they'd make a comment about him and me.

Either way, I was content with what we had. In ways, I wanted things to stay as they were. I didn't want to go "backwards" or well, forward. Taking the next step was what really left me insecure and reluctant to kiss Shinobu a little longer and passionately when alone with him.

I didn't wanna admit it, but deep down, I wanted more than just a quick peck on the lips. But what came after that; making out, foreplay, then sex? I wasn't ready for either of these things! Thinking about it made me feel dizzy. I was just so bothered by the thoughts of whatever junk Usami wrote in _Junai Flame_ because well, it was my first relationship. With another man. Who in ways looks like a girl (a really pretty one if she didn't frown so much).

It was just so odd. I could get over the gender mentality, but when it came to anything… physical, everything would just stop progressing. I'd pull away from him when I would realize I was starting to get a little too into kissing him and I would say, "Why do you have to do that?"

Then he'd say something corny out of a shojou—manga like, "Because I wanted to" and I'd blush beat red.

Meanwhile, several other things were going on.

The press had finally stopped mobbing us back home—probably due to the fact that the wedding date was finally leaked. It was about a month away, on the twelfth of August.Now it was just a matter of preparing for that. Guest invitations, tuxedo fittings, setting up, location—all of this was done in a snap once the paparazzi were gone, as if we could all breathe again.

At the same time, Senpai started to stay out of our little group more often. Or at least, that's how I felt. Sure, he was already banned from going to my place, but whenever we were planning to go somewhere, he'd have some sort of excuse handy. I suggested this to Shinobu, but he said he didn't notice.

And to my chagrin, I kept noticing the last man I wanted to see touring about the neighborhood; AKA, Haruhiko. Surely it would be a coincidence minus the fact that I'd never seen him around the area before and I doubted a wealthy guy like him would be caught dead in a commoner's supermarket while having access to servants for doing the grocery shopping. I just try not to look him in the eye and pretend that his lackeys got sick or something like that. It's really creepy. I wanted to say something to Usami-san, but he had finally started to relax for once—or at least not when Aikawa was not threatening him to get work done on time for once.

Oh, and speaking of "work," Usami has asked me to proof-read his porn series, _Junai Passion_, to make sure everyone is in character. He had enough of my constant complaints on how he portrayed my character and Shinobu's—which he still writes in spite of the many times I've yelled at him not to. Of course, he was probably looking for another way to torture me mentally and physically as I hate reading. So obviously I'd hate reading about my brother and Usami, Kamijou-Sensei and Miyagi-Sensei, and Shinobu and I having gratuitous amounts of sex.

Now, Shinobu wasn't aware that I was assisting Usami in the least bit. In fact, he didn't even know that some books were based on certain people Usami knew in real life—or that _Junai Passion_ even existed. I had a feeling that it was going to be less pleasant than the novels based on nii-chan.

"Wait, what?" I gaped, bubbling with anxiety, "Shinobu, seriously, you don't have to-"

"Too late, I've already made up my mind," Shinobu said matter-of-factly.

"…Even though Usami's going to be taking notes the entire time like some kind of a perverted stalker?"

Shinobu shrugged. "He's not perverted; he just needs our help. I'm not sure if there's anyone else who'd be willing to do the same."

I lowered my head. "I guess not…"

"And besides, it's not like you were gonna go romantic on me any time soon."

So to end up going on my first date with Shinobu under the supervision of the Lord Usami in order to help out with the series, unknown to said boyfriend, was all kinds of awkward. So went Misaki's twentieth year!

_**Act 3**_

_**Part 1**_

**The World is Crazy. You're Crazy to the World**

It started when I had walked with Shinobu from his place into our apartment. Hiroki and Miyagi were busy with their summer sessions back at Mitsuhashi and there really wasn't much to do in the area. At least here we had access to a nearby movie theater, numerous food joints, arcades, and other stuff.

"We're back"-

"I'm going abroad!" Usami shouted, stomping away from Aikawa angrily and down the stairs.

"Sensei, please give me a break!" Aikawa cried from behind, "Do you realize how many days you have before the deadline?"

"Be quiet, I'm well aware."

Shinobu moved a little closer to me. "Maybe we should come back in a half hour," he whispered.

"No, no. Takahiro's at work. The ways these two are yelling is making me nervous enough to not leave them alone in the house." I looked up at Aikawa and tried to give a convincing smile. "Good morning, Aikawa-san."

"Misaki-kun! You have to stop him! There's a scene in the book he's currently working on where you… Uh…" She paused, trying to ignore my flabbergasted expression, and and took a deep breath, "The main character, a college student, goes on a date." Usami plopped down on the couch, cigarette pack ready in hand as Aikawa buried her face in her hands, totally frustrated. "And I keep telling him a normal, ordinary date is fine, but he says it's impossible; he doesn't know what a normal date is like, and now he's threatening to flee overseas because he can't write it!"

Shinobu furrowed his brows. "Wait, what was that about the main character?"

"I see…" I said, ignoring Shinobu's gaze.

"There's only twenty or thirty pages left to go. Would you please_finish_it already? I told you, you can write it however you like!"

"Wait a minute; remind me who it was again who rejected my first draft?" Usami grumbled, Suzuki-san by his side.

"Normal college students don't make reservations at five star hotels! They don't sail around the world on luxury cruise ships! They don't charter private planes!" Each phrase was spat out with more edge and annoyance.

"I did."

"What, he just has high standards. If the college kid is insanely rich, I say go for it," Shinobu muttered.

"Please don't say that any louder. She'll hear you!" I whispered.

"Well, you don't come even close to normal!" Aikawa hissed, right as ever. She ran both hands through her hair frantically, on the verge of screaming. "Oh no, what am I gonna do? This time there's no way I'll be able to get to this to the proofers! I need a lie to feed the printing office! The train stopped running? My pet cat spoke and told me not to go? I came down with water on the knee!"

"U-um, then, why don't you just tell him about your own dates from when you were in college?" I suggested helpfully, then wondering if I should move away from the black hole of depression ready to suck me in. Instead she stood there in complete silence, which terrified me more. "Huh? Did I say something wrong?"

Shinobu glanced at me with pity, obviously knowing ahead of time what the issue was. "I'm surprised she didn't mention the hot date you guys had," he smirked.

I rolled my eyes. "Really? Are you still on that?"

"Bad, bad, bad, bad! This is seriously bad news! We've already sold the ads! If we have to push back the release date now, I'll be liable for damage control! _He_ probably doesn't give a hoot about that, but it would be a heinous disgrace for me!" She grimaced suddenly. "Isn't there a normal college student somewhere close by we could use-someone with real-life experiences we could use for material?"

"Why not us? I've probably got enough spending money on me to go out somewhere," Shinobu volunteered.

If I had spazzed out anymore than possible, I could've choked on air. "**Us**? Shinobu, what are you-"

"You will! Shinobu-kun, you're an angel!" Aikawa squealed as she then grasped my hands, "And you, Misaki-kun, you must have experienced a normal date before, right?"

"N-no, um, I"-

"Please, help me out here! You've got to teach him what "normal" means!" Aikawa said desperately.

"Aikawa, are you sure you're asking the right person for that?" asked Shinobu.

"Shut up! I know exactly what to do! You'll see!" I scowled, then faced Aikawa with a proud grin, "All right, I'd be happy to! Believe it or not, I'm actually quite popular with the ladies- they can't stay away from me!"

Both Shinobu and Usami exchanged a brief chuckle. Aikawa didn't seem to be paying attention to them at this point.

"Oh, really? You're a lifesaver, seriously! I'll bring some Kuma cream puffs for you next time!"

"Now if you'll excuse us, we'll go plan our date," Shinobu said as he firmly dragged me off to the side and into my room. He closed the door behind us before Aikawa could say anything else and punched my arm lightly.

"The ladies can't keep their hands off of you, eh?" Shinobu muttered.

"What, I was just buttering her up, Shinobu."

"Her, or your ego?"

I lowered my eyes. "Whatever. I just know what a real date is supposed to be like and that's that," I said, lying down on the bed.

"Despite the fact that you've never been on one—let alone with me?" asked Shinobu.

It was hard to keep my composure at this point. "Why are you getting all agitated over this? I've watched plenty of movies with the 'typical' date and stuff. It's not that hard to get what a date is supposed to be like. You know, we'll go to a restaurant, go to a theater, go to a carnival, and everything else. See? It's simple."

"Then why do you never take me out if it's that easy?"

I let out a heavy sigh, gathering my thoughts together. "…Shinobu, is it really bothering you that much?"

He turned away from me shyly. "Well, yeah… I was just trying to be patient because I thought that you wouldn't know what to do on a date and get all nervous. Yet there you were acting like Mr. Know-It-All Macho Man and I kind of blew a fuse."

"Honestly I've wanted to take you out for a while now, but I was just… scared."

"Of what?"

I shrugged. "Screwing up, I guess. I mean, it'd be our first date and the…first one I've ever went out on. I don't want it to be a disaster just because I'd get all nervous and jittery since it means we've taken the next step and-I don't know. Maybe I'm just getting ahead of myself. I've always wanted a relationship, but now that I have one I feel like I'm gonna do one little thing wrong and mess everything up completely."

Shinobu grasped my hand lightly, massaging my palm with his thumb. "There's nothing to be nervous about. It's just me."

"But it is just you-not some random person on the street. If I impress them, it doesn't matter, but you're with me, so…"

Shinobu's expression softened as he leaned over to kiss me, then pulling away far enough for our noses to touch. "Then let's plan our date-we could even practice, if you want."

…

In the end, Shinobu and I worked on a list of stuff to do for the date. We'd go out in a couple of days, have lunch in the park (probably something homemade), go shopping, take a look at the newly repaired aquarium, take a ride on the Ferris wheel, and then go out for a NON-expensive dinner. It was all completely cliché enough to make my stomach turn, but then again, this date was to teach Usami the art of normalcy in the first place.

Shinobu's initial idea for a restaurant was something on the expensive side, but I refused it since: A) I had no money, B) I wouldn't let him pay for me, C) Usami was supervising the date and he wasn't gonna learn anything if we ate like kings.

We actually did scenarios of what would happen on the date and stuff, but after a while we didn't take it seriously and started goofing off. Like all of a sudden we would be at the aquarium and a shark would bust out of the tank and we'd all get soaking wet—or out of the blue, a stranger would confess their love to me and I'd get kidnapped to which then Shinobu would spontaneously be eaten by sharks.

I was actually pretty excited for the next day. Takahiro kept making fun of me because I was acting like a school girl when planning our picnic and scrapping ideas that sounded (un)romantic. Both Usami and Shinobu offered to help me put together the basket, but of course their cooking history warned me otherwise. When I told him I didn't want any help, Usami at least offered to drive us around since we were doing him the favor of teaching him about the dating world. I refused that offer as well since having him drive us all over the place made me feel like a kid. It was even worse that we were being "chaperoned".

…

At the park, Shinobu and I sat next to each other on the edge of the checkered blanket, eating egg-salad sandwiches while staring at the clouds. Usami was busy observing us some feet away, behind the picnic basket. Preferably, I would've wished for him to stare at us at a farther distance, but seeing him with a notepad in hand, scribbling notes furiously while glancing at us caught plenty of stares-enough to make him seem like a total creeper.

"You never did tell me what this book is about," said Shinobu, wiping the crumbs off his mouth with one hand. "It's obviously a romance novel of some sort, but are we supposed to be like the characters or something?"

I froze. "Um…" I looked back at Usami, who was still writing. "Nothing of the sort. We're just supposed to act…**naturally**."

"Is that so?" Shinobu asked incredulously, nibbling on the sandwich again, "Imagine if everything we do is being written down, word for word? Like there's a book about us?"

I laughed nervously. "What? Seriously? Who would ever write something like that?" Usami was surely staring daggers into my back when hearing this.

"'Don't know, but I think it'd be kind of hilarious to read. Y'know, minus the awkward sex scenes."

"Wh-WHAT?" I practically yelled, "B-but we never-"

Shinobu raised his hands. "Chill out, it was just a weird idea. Calm down before you make a scene," he said. Usami was trying hard not to laugh in the background.

…

"I know you said we should go shopping, but what're we buying?" asked Shinobu, once we were out walking the streets.

I shrugged. "I don't know. I figured that maybe I could buy something for you."

"Are you sure you wanna do that? You don't have to get me anything."

"But I want to. I mean, I don't have much, but I can still get you a little something," I told him.

Wordlessly, he grabbed my hand, failing to hide a smile.

My face heated upon the slight physical contact seen by those passing us and I tried not to point that out. "What? What is it?" I asked.

"Nothing. I feel like such a girl right now is all," Shinobu giggled, "But at least let me buy something for you."

"Well, I don't really want anything," I thought aloud, "If you really wanted to get me a gift, though, you could buy the new volume of _The Kan_!"

"…Alright," Shinobu hesitated, "Only if you promise to try and improve your taste in books. That stuff will rot your brain more than it already has."

"I still don't understand how you cannot like _The Kan_! Ijuuin Kyo is a total god!" I gasped.

Shinobu rolled his eyes. "That is one of the reasons why."

…

"Whoa, awesome!" I gaped at the sight before me, pressing my hands against the glass. Shinobu was standing next to me, keeping a slight distance from the tank. "There's so many…"

"It's been a while since I saw this many fish," Usami interjected from behind us.

"Careful, Misaki. I think that shark's looking at you," Shinobu said, hinting at an earlier inside joke.

I smirked. "Think it'll come closer if I knock on the glass?"

"Come on, we just got here. If we do that we'll get kicked out," Shinobu snickered, "I at least wanna check out the penguin exhibit before you do something stupid."

"Right, right," I said, backing away from the tank. "I wanna check that out too. They're all supposed to be newborn hatchlings right now!"

"It's settled then." He waved to Usami, catching his attention. "Sensei, we're going to see the penguins. Coming with?"

"Actually, can I use the bathroom before we go on ahead?"

"How cute, you're asking," said Shinobu, "You have my permission—just don't get lost."

"Whatever. I'll be back in a few."

I walked on forward, feeling content with myself. The date was going pretty well so far. There were no tears or anger—not that I expected any—but I couldn't help but be on my toes for such oncoming emotions. I'd read his face every so often, see how tight he'd hold me when our hands were intertwined, pay attention to his body language and guess if he was relaxed or not. But after a while, the paranoia subsided and everything felt natural.

"Excuse me"-

Apparently I had spoken too soon.

Before me was the last person I wanted to see or expected to find, A.K.A Usami Haruhiko. _'Why do I have to run into him now!'_

"Wait a moment, I need to talk to you," he said to me before I could flee in the other direction.

"I have no such need!" I protested.

"Well, I do."

"Let go of me!"

"Lower your voice," Haruhiko spoke in a lower tone. Other people were staring at us and I felt embarrassed upon raising my voice. "Why are you here?"

"I came for fun, obviously, why else?" I grumbled, arms crossed and nose stuck up. "What about you? What are you doing here?"

"Business. I designed this aquarium," he answered nonchalantly. Somehow, I managed to believe that was just coincidence. "This is perfect timing. I actually had a question to ask you."

I surrendered. Obviously he wasn't going to leave me alone anytime soon. "Fine, what is it then? I have to get back."

"Who is that boy you're hanging around with? I see him a lot with you."

"Huh?" I blinked my eyes, surprised that he didn't mention the fact that his brother was with us. He was more concerned about Shinobu. "Oh, he's…a really good friend of mine. We heard the aquarium reopened and decided to visit."

"Is that so?" His face remained stoic. "I finally understand." He shifted his glasses once, staring me directly in the eyes. "I've done a lot of thinking myself. I'd supposed that you were on my mind simply because my attention had extended to include you, given my position in relation to my brother, but I've realized that's not it at all."

I had a horrible feeling about this. "What's this now?"

"I'm in love with you."

And there it was; the special something that my gut instinct warned me of and insisted I should run away from. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, there! Get a hold of yourself, my good sir. I'm a Japanese man! This joke has gone far enough…"

Haruhiko began to move closer into my personal bubble. "What do you want? I can provide you with anything you desire."

"No, that's quite alright! I think I've eaten a lifetime supply of strawberries and cherries from the ones Nii-chan shared with me! If you were going to have to give me something else, it would have to be an island."

"An island? I can get you a nice tropical one."

"Keep it! Please, keep it!" I shouted as I ran far away from him.

Usami and Shinobu were spotted at the doorway where the penguins were, waiting impatiently.

"There you are! I told you not to get lost," Shinobu lectured me.

"Geez, Shinobu. I'm not a child. What matters is that I'm here now, so let's go." We began to walk briskly towards the exhibit, but Usami stood in place. I gestured to him. "Uh, Usami-san?"

"What's he doing here?" he choked out.

"Who? What's wrong?" asked Shinobu.

"Nothing, nothing! Let's get out of here." I began pushing Shinobu slightly in one direction and said in a whisper, "I'll explain later, Usami-san."

…

We were raised above Tokyo Tower, staring out the window. I sat across from Shinobu and Usami was once again accompanying us, sitting by my side. Minus the sound of Usami's pen hitting paper, we stared outside with an abnormal awkward silence.

"…So, I was thinking," I said suddenly. He barely moved his head. "There's a Panda-san near home. Do you wanna go there for dinner?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, sure."

There was something slightly off about him that I couldn't figure out off the top of my head. If I could use one word to describe him in that moment as of now, it would be distant. Drifting? Un-focused?

"Have you ever eaten there?" I asked.

"No, but I'll try it."

Leaning a little closer towards him, I said softly, "Maybe we should go home. I could always cook something."

"I told you; it's fine. I'll go with you to that Panda place," Shinobu muttered.

I lowered my eyes in annoyance. "Alright, spill it. What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" he snapped, and then said in a more relaxed tone, "Sorry, I'm just a little tired is all. I mean, we did a lot today."

My insides twisted. I suddenly felt hot. "W-was it too much? Should we have taken the car after all?"

"Not at all, I'm fine, just…"

"Is take-out fine?"

"…Sure."

A short while later, we were at the top of the Ferris wheel. At that point Shinobu came over to my side and nuzzled his body against mine, hiding his face. "I'm sorry…"

"Shinobu?"

He was wordless the entire way down. His head lied on my shoulder and he locked arms with me, clinging. I wasn't sure if he was awake or asleep.

"If you really are tired, it's fine with me. You both have done more than enough for me today," Usami said just before we landed, "I'll call a cab."

"Thank you, Usami-san."  
…

Dinner didn't last too long. Usami decided to eat in his room while working on the book. Shinobu barely ate a bite and to my surprise, I wasn't really that hungry either. Not to say that the food wasn't decent, but there was a kind of uncertain aura that dissolved my appetite.

I was trying to figure him out. Obviously something was wrong. It bothered me that I might've done something, but what?

'_What if he found out about the Junai series and got really mad?' _I asked myself as I slowly chewed on the rice I had just shoveled in. _'Or what if…' _It suddenly occurred to me. '_What if he heard Haruhiko's confession? Maybe Haruhiko also could've said something to him and'_-

"I know this is kind of weird to ask, but can I stay the night?" Shinobu asked suddenly.

I blinked, completely off-guard. I started to feel nervous by his question_. 'Wait, does he mean he wants to…?'_ "Uh, it's okay with me, but will Kamijou-sensei and Miyagi-sensei be fine with it?" _'Please say no, please say-'_

"I don't see why not. Besides, the last thing I wanna do is ask them to pick me up at this hour when they have just gotten home from work—not to mention I'm sure they want some alone time. And I know your brother won't be home until late tonight. Plus, Usami-sensei is working on that book, so I don't wanna disturb him either."

"I…sure." I breathed in. "Just make sure you call them and everything. You can get changed in my pajamas if you want—they're in the bottom drawer.

For a split second I expected him to say something corny like, "Clothes won't be necessary," but instead he said, "Alright. I'll go now."

He left the table, leaving me more time to panic while cleaning the dishes_. 'Stay the night? What the hell does that mean? I mean, we've been together for like, four months, but today was our first date!' _I packed away dinner, thinking of eating it for tomorrow's lunch and took a deep breath. _'Alright, I can do this. I'll just offer to sleep on the couch. No big deal.'_

To my surprise, the door was left open. I suspected Shinobu had finished changing, but when I looked inside, he was sitting on the bed, wearing the clothes he had on from earlier.

"Ah, I thought you were gonna change," I said. "But whatever. Just let me know when you wanna go to sleep. If you want, take the bed. I'll sleep on the couch; it doesn't matter to me."

"You… Y-you can sleep on the bed if you want." His face was stern, failing to hide the faint blush quickly gaining a vibrant hue. It was adorable in a way that made me feel uncomfortable.

"Are you, uh, sure you want the couch? It's fine with me if you don't."

He locked eyes with me seriously. "I don't."

"Okay then," I said, feeling a bit confused. "No couch for you then."

"I don't think you understand."

Before I could say anything else, he pulled me onto the bed, kissing me so roughly I thought he was going to suck the life out of my lips. Without hesitation his tongue slipped in and began to rub against my mine—a trick that forced my body to lie on top of his. The harder Shinobu pressed his lips against mine or bit on my lip, the more I was sucked towards a wild frenzy of tossing and turning on the sheets. My body felt like it was burning alive and I was barely able to breathe.

**I thought that flame was going to engulf me alive. And for a moment, I thought it would.**

And so went Misaki's twentieth year.

**A/N: So I figured you guys already got mad because I took forever with this chapter. Then I leave you all with a cliff hanger. Please don't hate me too much…**

**I also didn't feature anything on Misaki's birthday because it's actually not important for the story, so, yeah. My bad.**

**In the meantime, be on the lookout for Junjou Passion! It's going to begin quite shortly. Thank you all so much for reading. Oh, and happy belated New Year~**


End file.
